The Future Starts Now
by elle1364
Summary: COMPLETED: Sequel to The Love Game... Elizabeth and Conner must deal with the consequences of their actions while Jessica and Jeremy grow much closer. Lame summary, story is better. Please read and review!!! :)
1. Prologue

Note: This story is a continuation of The Love Game, so don't read it  
  
unless you already know what happens.  
  
Prologue  
  
Elizabeth Wakefield:  
  
All my life I've been somewhat "perfect." I've often been the teacher's  
  
pet, and always made good grades. I've hardly rebelled against the  
  
rules. Teachers call me a model student. Parents wish their kid was like  
  
me. I'm not trying to sound stuck up, but it's true.  
  
Then everything changed this year. I snuck out. I cared less about what  
  
my parents thought. I didn't always do my homework, and I let my grades  
  
slip. I rushed into a new relationship, and went to far.  
  
No doubt I've changed. And that change hasn't been for the better.  
  
Jessica Wakefield  
  
Until this year, I was always the popular girl. I wore cool clothes,  
  
had cool friends, and acted like I was the queen of the world. Everyone  
  
admired me, and I know I treated a lot of people like trash.  
  
Then I learned the hard way that popularity doesn't last forever. It  
  
only takes one wrong move, and everyone can turn on you. Luckily, that's  
  
been cleared up now, and I'm back where I was a year ago.  
  
I have changed. I realized that there was more to life then gossip,  
  
guys, shopping and cheerleading. I think I've changed for the better.  
  
Conner McDermott  
  
When I was thirteen, I ran with a bad crowd. I did things that I regret  
  
doing, even now. I cut school, and shoplifted, and hurt people that I  
  
was close to. I dated at least three dozen girls and broke a lot of  
  
hearts.  
  
I've changed since then. I never thought that I'd end up in a serious  
  
relationship. That's probably the biggest change. Who ever thought that  
  
I'd end up dating some one like Liz?  
  
Melissa Fox  
  
To get popular, I'd put others people down to make me look better. I've  
  
spread roomers about dozens of people. Really mean roomers, lots that  
  
were untrue. And I never regretted it, until I became friends with  
  
Jessica. She instantly forgave me for all that I've done to her. I regret  
  
that I ruined her reputation, and stole her friends. I really wish that  
  
we could have been friends sooner.  
  
I've changed. There's no doubt in my mind that I have. I've been the  
  
way I am since elementary school. Now I realized what I've done all these  
  
years, and I don't like it. I'm going to change my ways and become a  
  
whole new Melissa.  
  
Oh yeah? The other change that I've made? I don't love Will. I hate his  
  
guts. For all I care, he can go screw himself. 


	2. The Truth Comes Out

Chapter One  
  
The Truth Comes Out  
  
Alice Wakefield stared at the doctor in disbelief. "What!" She  
  
exclaimed, not trusting what she had heard. Elizabeth sat silent, not trusting  
  
herself to speak.  
  
The doctor looked back and forth between the mother and daughter. "I  
  
said that Elizabeth is pregnant, about three or four weeks. I take that  
  
this comes as a surprise?" She scanned her clipboard, as if checking to  
  
see if there was anything else.  
  
Alice looked from her daughter to the doctor. "Yes, very much so." She  
  
turned to Elizabeth. "I think that we'd better go." She turned back to  
  
the doctor. "Thanks for you help, Dr. Mitchell."  
  
Elizabeth looked at her mom as they got in the car. "I'm sorry." She  
  
said quietly.  
  
Alice looked over to her daughter, who looked as if she was struggling  
  
not to cry.  
  
"Liz, I'm not mad at you, but I am disappointed." She turned to face  
  
Elizabeth. "Conner is the father, right?" Elizabeth nodded. Alice shook  
  
her head. "Why did you, anyway?"  
  
Elizabeth looked at her mom. She deserved to know that much. "It just  
  
happened. We were kissing, and the next thing we both knew… Do you get  
  
that?"  
  
Alice nodded, and pulled out of the parking lot. "I figured that was  
  
what had happened. But was that just how it happened the first time?"  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. "It may sound strange, but it only happened  
  
one time."  
  
Alice looked over at her daughter. "I believe you. Do you want to just  
  
go home? You don't have to go back to school."  
  
Elizabeth smiled slightly. "If you don't mind. I don't want to face  
  
everyone."  
  
************************************************************  
  
Jessica slid into a seat at the lunch table between Melissa and Maria.  
  
"Hello, people!" She greeted them, eyeing the suspicious lump on her  
  
tray. "What is this crap, anyway? They call it meatloaf, but I don't  
  
trust that."  
  
Andy poked at the lump on his plate. "So that's what they do with gym  
  
socks that people leave in the locker rooms! All they have to do is stew  
  
them- for a completely inedible meal!"  
  
Melissa looked at her plate, to Andy, and to Jessica. "Does he ever  
  
stop making cracks about the food?"  
  
Tia looked at her, and laughed. "Nope, he does run out of material  
  
sometimes, so he'll start repeating jokes after awhile."  
  
Melissa nodded, and Conner took the opportunity to ask Jessica a  
  
question. "Jessica, was Liz supposed to come back to school later today?"  
  
Jessica shrugged. "I don't know. She said she might, or she might not.  
  
Depends on what's up."  
  
Conner nodded. "Just checking."  
  
************************************************************  
  
Elizabeth watched her mom bustle around the kitchen, fixing lunch.  
  
"Mom?"  
  
Alice looked up from the pot of spaghetti on the stove. "Yes?"  
  
Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Do you think that Dad's going to be mad  
  
when he finds out?"  
  
Alice sighed, wishing that she didn't have to answer the question. "I  
  
know that he won't be happy. Your father is old-fashioned about some  
  
things, and this is one of them. He strongly believes that you should be a  
  
virgin until your wedding night."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. It was weird to hear her mom talk about heavy issues.  
  
"I figured as much. If there was one thing I'd done that I could take  
  
back, it would have been this."  
  
Alice looked at her daughter, wishing that this was happening to  
  
someone else. "Are you going to talk to Conner tonight?"  
  
"Yeah. It'll be the best to tell him as soon as I can." Elizabeth  
  
sighed. "I wish this hadn't have happened."  
  
Now that was the understatement of the year.  
  
************************************************************  
  
Jessica and Melissa stood in front of Jessica's locker after the bell  
  
rang, signaling the end of school. "So, are you doing anything later?"  
  
Melissa asked.  
  
Jessica nodded. "I have to work for about two hours, but after that I'm  
  
free."  
  
Melissa nodded. "I got in a fight with Cherie and Gina today. They  
  
think that I'm a traitor for being friends with you, so I'm not going to  
  
hang around with them anymore. You're a better friend then they ever  
  
were."  
  
"Really?"  
  
Melissa smiled. "You are. Anyway, can I hang around the HOJ after  
  
school? I'm supposed to pick my little sister up from basketball at three  
  
thirty, so I have an hour to kill."  
  
"Free world. I don't see a reason why you shouldn't."  
  
Melissa smiled. It felt great to have a friend like Jessica.  
  
Elizabeth hang up the phone after leaving Conner a message on his  
  
answering machine. She'd told him to come over once he got the message  
  
because she needed to talk to him. She'd figured it would be easier to  
  
deliver the news to his face.  
  
Elizabeth sighed. How was she supposed to get through this mess?  
  
Conner waited for Tia by her locker at the end of the day. She'd asked  
  
him after lunch if she could get a ride home because Andy was planning  
  
to go to Evan's swim meet, and she didn't want to come along.  
  
There she was, bouncing down the hall, her pre-calculus book in hand.  
  
"Hi Conner!" She greeted him, flipping open her locker.  
  
"Hey Tee. What did you do this morning? Take perky pills?" He asked,  
  
amused with her perky tone.  
  
"Oh, I'm just happy. Mr. Swansea agreed to let me retake my math test  
  
'cause I'd missed the day we were reviewing."  
  
"Great. How bad did you do on the first test?" Conner asked.  
  
Tia pulled a wrinkled sheet of paper from between the pages of her text  
  
book. A large, red D was circled at the top right hand corner. "Pretty  
  
bad. So your going to help me study for my retest."  
  
"Why me?"  
  
Tia looked at him like he was an idiot. "Well, you're the one that aced  
  
pre-calc last year. If you can't help me, nobody can."  
  
"Oh fine." Conner grumbled. "But it's going to cost you a trip to HOJ."  
  
************************************************************  
  
Half an hour later, Conner dropped Tia off at her house, and then went  
  
over to his own house. He walked in, threw his backpack down in the  
  
foyer, and then walked into the kitchen.  
  
Conner looked over at the answering machine, where the little light was  
  
blinking. He pressed the button. "Hey Conner, it's Liz. I know that  
  
you're not home yet, but will you please come over once you get this  
  
message? I really need to talk to you, and it's really important. Love you,  
  
bye."  
  
He listen to her message, and picked his keys up from where he'd tossed  
  
them on the counter. Conner couldn't have helped to notice it sounded  
  
like something was wrong. 


	3. It'll Be Okay

Chapter Two  
  
It'll be okay  
  
Conner pulled his Mustang up Elizabeth's driveway, where he parked it.  
  
He opened the door and locked up the car, the walked up the short  
  
sidewalk to her front door. He took a deep breath. He knew something was  
  
wrong with his girlfriend, but he didn't know what it was.  
  
Conner pressed on the doorbell, and he could hear the faint sound of  
  
the metallic chimes. Elizabeth's mother answered only seconds later.  
  
"Hello Conner." She greeted him. "Elizabeth's upstairs. She's waiting for  
  
you."  
  
Conner nodded. "Thanks, can I go up?"  
  
"You may, but knock first, okay?"  
  
"I'll be sure too."  
  
Alice walked back into the kitchen, and Conner crossed to foyer to the  
  
base of the staircase. He walked towards Elizabeth's room, where sure  
  
enough, the door was closed.  
  
Conner softly knocked. "Hey Liz, it's me, can I come in?"  
  
From in side, he heard her gentle voice, "Come on in, it's open."  
  
Conner opened her door, and shut it softly behind him. He crossed the  
  
floor to her bed, where she was sitting, leaning against a stack of  
  
pillows. Her face was slightly red and blotchy, and a slight black smudge  
  
streaked down her check, the remains of earlier applied mascara. She'd  
  
obviously been crying.  
  
He sat down next to her, and wordlessly wrapped his arms around her.  
  
Conner felt her lean her head against his chest. He held her for a few  
  
moments, then pulled back to look at her. "What do you need to tell me?"  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip, and looked deeply into his green eyes. She took  
  
a deep breath. "Conner, I'm pregnant."  
  
Conner stared at her, disbelief spreading across his face. "What?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I'm pregnant. That's why I've felt sick lately." She  
  
felt him pull her closer to him. Immediately, she felt slightly  
  
comforted.  
  
Conner gently ran a hand through her blonde hair. "Liz, I'm going to go  
  
ahead and say this. I love you, and while it may be my baby too, it's  
  
your decision."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I just thought that you should be one of the first  
  
to know. The only other person that knows is my mom."  
  
"Thanks. What are you considering, now?"  
  
"I don't know." Elizabeth sighed. "I need to tell Jessica and my dad.  
  
And you need to tell your mom and Megan. Then I'll take it from there."  
  
************************************************************  
  
"Welcome to House of Java, how may I help you?" Jessica asked what  
  
seemed like the millionth customer in the last hour. The place was never  
  
this packed on a Tuesday night.  
  
The tall, gangly, blond, college-age guy smiled at her. "Double latte  
  
with a shot of espresso, please."  
  
Jessica nodded as she entered it on the register. "Will that be all?"  
  
"Yes." The guy answered.  
  
"That'll be three dollars and sixteen cents." Jessica quickly rang up  
  
the purchase, and handed him his change at the same time Jeremy handed  
  
him the drink. Corey, who hadn't helped at all, was outside, smoking a  
  
cigarette.  
  
Jessica smiled at Jeremy as he went to fix a mochachino for a heavily  
  
tattooed guy with various body piercings. After he had his order, the  
  
only person in line was a regular, Mrs. Rischeck.  
  
"Hello Jessica. I'd like an Earl Grey and a piece of rhubarb  
  
cheesecake, minus the strawberry topping."  
  
"That'll be five twelve, please." Jessica watched as Jeremy got the  
  
cheesecake. She grabbed a coffee mug and prepared Mrs. Rischeck's drink.  
  
They both place them on the counter at the same time, sharing a quick  
  
smile.  
  
The elderly lady smiled as she took her order and her change off the  
  
counter, pausing to put a few bills in the tip jar. "You kids make a cute  
  
couple."  
  
Jessica blushed at her parting words. She saw a slight blush rise on  
  
Jeremy's cheeks, too. He grabbed a towel and quickly wiped off the  
  
counter. "Do you think it's that obvious that we're a couple?"  
  
Jessica smiled. "I'm not sure."  
  
Jeremy gave her a one armed hug, and then checked to see if Mrs. Scott  
  
was anywhere before giving her a quick kiss. She didn't approve of  
  
public displays of affection, no matter how small. "Neither am I." He  
  
checked the clock. "It's almost five, so we'll be able to punch out in a few  
  
minutes. Want to do something?"  
  
Jessica shook her head. "I'd love to, but I want to see how Liz is  
  
doing, plus I think that Melissa wanted to hang out for awhile. I hope you  
  
don't mind. If I do free up though, I'll call you, okay?"  
  
They exchanged a small smile. Things between them were just perfect.  
  
Jessica parked the Jeep that the twin shared outside on the driveway,  
  
noting that Conner's Mustang was parked there too. She grabbed her purse  
  
and walked inside, crossing the foyer into the kitchen.  
  
Alice was in there, stirring a pot of noodles on the stove. Jessica  
  
could smell the scent of her mother's spaghetti sauce as she reached in  
  
the refrigerator for a diet Coke. "Hey Mom. Where's Liz?" Alice focused  
  
her attention on her other daughter.  
  
"Elizabeth's upstairs with Conner. I think that they need a little  
  
privacy for awhile, okay? Want to help me make some salads?"  
  
Jessica nodded, not knowing what she was getting at. "Sure, whatever."  
  
She took a knife from the drawer and started slicing the tomato that  
  
her mother had sat in front of her.  
  
Elizabeth and Conner walked down the stairs, his arm latched firmly  
  
around her waist. They'd been up in her room, talking, for almost an hour  
  
and a half. "Conner?" she asked softly.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Jess is here. Do you mind waiting down here for a little bit while I  
  
talk to her?"  
  
Conner gently let go of her. "No. I can understand wanting to talk to  
  
her alone."  
  
Elizabeth gave him a gentle kiss. "Thanks."  
  
They walked into the kitchen, Conner following behind Elizabeth.  
  
Jessica and Alice were standing at the counter. "Jess? Mom?"  
  
Alice turned to face her daughter. "Hi Liz, hi Conner."  
  
Elizabeth smiled at her mom. "Mom, can I talk to Jess for a minute?  
  
Alone?"  
  
Alice nodded. "Sure."  
  
Elizabeth motioned for Jessica to follow her, and she did.  
  
Jessica followed Elizabeth up to her room, where she shut the door  
  
behind them. Something was obviously up. After sitting down on her sister's  
  
bed, Jessica couldn't stand it any longer. "Liz, what's up?"  
  
Elizabeth took a deep breath, and looked down. "Jess," she said  
  
quietly, "I'm pregnant."  
  
Jessica felt her heart thump against her chest. Her sister? Pregnant?  
  
This wasn't happening.  
  
"It's true. I'm not kidding about this."  
  
Jessica nodded, unable to speak. This was major.  
  
"Jess?"  
  
Jessica nodded again. "But, but…"  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip, daring to look Jessica in the eye. "You know  
  
that Conner and I have…"  
  
"I know, it's just, it's just… well, I didn't think that that would  
  
happen to you. You're so, responsible or something. Please don't take that  
  
the wrong way."  
  
"I won't."  
  
Jessica shook her head. This was unreal, like a weird dream that she  
  
was about to wake up from.  
  
"And Jess?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Please don't tell anyone, okay?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
Jessica Wakefield  
  
I can't believe this. It can't be true. Elizabeth is not the type of  
  
girl to get pregnant. She's so responsible. I never thought that she  
  
would do something like this, let this happen.  
  
My sister is going to be a mother. She's only seventeen. Well, she  
  
might be eighteen when the baby comes, but still. Liz isn't old enough to  
  
be a mother. And Conner's only seventeen, too. No, wait, he's eighteen  
  
and legal now, but you know what I mean. They aren't old enough to be  
  
parents. 


	4. A Trustworthy Friend

Chapter Three  
  
A Trustworthy Friend  
  
Jessica lay on her bed an hour later, listening to the quiet  
  
conversation that Conner and Elizabeth were having in the next room. She'd been  
  
silent all through dinner, but so had everyone else. It was almost as if  
  
it strained them to talk. It was a good thing that her dad was out of  
  
town on business, for Elizabeth's sake. Jessica could just imagine how  
  
her dad would freak when he heard the news.  
  
Okay, this was going to drive her insane, worrying about her sister.  
  
Jessica had to get out of the house. She got off her bed, and grabbed her  
  
purse off her desk. She walked down the stairs, across the foyer and  
  
out the front door.  
  
Jessica walked over to the Jeep, and unlocked the driver door. After  
  
backing down the drive and onto the street, she knew that she really  
  
needed to talk to someone. Jessica knew that Elizabeth had told her not to  
  
tell, but if she didn't, she figured that she'd probably go crazy. So  
  
who could she talk to and trust not to tell. Jeremy? No, he'd probably  
  
accidentally bring up Saturday night, and that wasn't a topic that she  
  
wanted to discuss. Tia? No, she'd tell Conner that Jessica had told her  
  
what was going on. Andy? No, Andy had his own issues to deal with.  
  
Melissa?  
  
Melissa? Jessica thought again, considering it. Okay, she had to spill  
  
to someone. Melissa it was.  
  
Melissa-  
  
Honey, thanks for picking Lana up after school. You're father and I are  
  
at a dinner party at the country club and won't be back until late.  
  
Lana can go over to a friend's house, but make sure she is home by 7:00  
  
and is in bed by 9:30. You'll have to make dinner. We'll be back late.  
  
Love, Mom  
  
Melissa rolled her eyes as she read the note from her mother, which was  
  
stuck on the counter. Like she cared, she'd already dropped her little  
  
sister at a friend's house. She didn't want to watch the little brat.  
  
Melissa walked into the office and got out the phone book. She flipped  
  
to the P section of the phone book and had found the phone number for  
  
delivery pizza when the doorbell rang.  
  
Melissa walked across the entryway and unlocked the door. She was  
  
surprised to see Jessica standing on the front step. "Hey Jess, come in.  
  
What brings you here?"  
  
Jessica stepped in, and Melissa locked the door behind her. "So, what's  
  
up?"  
  
Jessica bit her lip. "I just needed to talk."  
  
Melissa nodded. "Okay. I was just about ready to order some pizza. Do  
  
you mind if I do that first?"  
  
Jessica shrugged. Melissa walked over to the phone. "Are you hungry?"  
  
"Yeah." She'd just picked at her dinner earlier.  
  
"Cheese okay? That's the only type that I like."  
  
"Sure."  
  
Melissa nodded, and ordered a large cheese pizza. Then she sat Jessica  
  
down at the kitchen table. "Okay, something's wrong. What is it?"  
  
Jessica took a deep breath. Might as well get it out in the open.  
  
"Elizabeth's pregnant."  
  
Melissa looked at her, eyes wide, not speaking for a moment. "Whoa."  
  
Jessica nodded. "I couldn't believe it, either. Liz has always been the  
  
responsible twin. This was out of right field."  
  
"That's what I thought, too."  
  
"She and Conner are way too young to be parents. I nearly freaked. She  
  
told me not to tell anyone, but I couldn't hold it in any longer. I  
  
hope you don't mind me dumping on you." Jessica said, sighing.  
  
Melissa nodded. "I won't tell anyone."  
  
"Good, 'cause Liz would kill me if she knew that I'd told you."  
  
************************************************************  
  
Elizabeth Wakefield  
  
Conner just left. He's been over since four, and it's past nine now. I  
  
can't believe that this is happening. I'm in shock. It's almost unreal,  
  
but at least I know that Conner will support me in whatever I decide to  
  
do. I don't really know what I should do, even. Abortion's out. I don't  
  
believe in it, and I think that it's morally wrong. Conner agrees with  
  
me. I'm not sure about some of the other options, which ones I might  
  
consider. First, I have to get past the issue of telling my dad. That  
  
might be one of the hardest things to do. Conner said that he was going  
  
to go ahead and talk to his mom. We're not going to tell anyone else for  
  
the moment.  
  
Jessica Wakefield  
  
I told Melissa everything. I'm not sure whether or not I feel guilty  
  
about it or not. I also know that I can trust her. No one could act that  
  
sincere. I feel a lot better now. Poor Liz, I can't believe that this  
  
happened to her. I guess that proves it can happen to anyone.  
  
Melissa Fox  
  
I can't believe that Elizabeth Wakefield is pregnant. It's almost more  
  
than I can take. She always came across as responsible, the type that  
  
would never get pregnant. I listened to Jess talk tonight, and I felt  
  
bad for Elizabeth. One time can end up so wrong, even though at the time  
  
it felt so right. Which is why I remember Trent's party. I still can't  
  
believe that I slept with that guy. It wasn't my first time or  
  
anything, my first was with Will after junior prom. What if something like that  
  
could happen to me?  
  
************************************************************  
  
Jessica shot a look at her sister the next morning as they drove to  
  
school. Elizabeth hadn't said a word all morning, not that Jessica could  
  
blame her.  
  
After Jessica steered into the SVH parking lot, she turned to her  
  
sister. "Are you okay?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I don't know how I'm going to face everyone. Even if  
  
they don't know, it's like I'm subconsciously imagining that they do."  
  
Jessica nodded, slamming shut the driver's side door. She gave her  
  
sister a quick hug. "You'll get through." Elizabeth didn't look convinced,  
  
but her face lifted as Conner's Mustang pulled into the lot and parked  
  
next to the Jeep.  
  
"Hey Liz," he said, gently wrapping his arm around her waist. "Are you  
  
doing okay this morning?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded and leaned her head against his chest. "Yeah, I guess  
  
so."  
  
Jessica gave the couple a quick smile. "I'll see you guys later, okay?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded, and Jessica dashed off to where some of the  
  
cheerleaders were standing.  
  
Conner gently let go of her, not moving towards the building yet. "Are  
  
things okay at home?"  
  
"For now. My dad will be home tonight, and the fireworks will start  
  
then." Elizabeth responded.  
  
Conner nodded. "I talked to my mom, and strange enough, she's not mad  
  
at us. Disappointed, but not mad."  
  
"Did you talk to Megan?"  
  
"Yeah, but I don't think that she understands why we… you know. I think  
  
that she's just really shocked at how things are turning out." Conner  
  
said, starting to walk toward the building. Elizabeth followed, silent  
  
until they got past the entrance. At the point where they needed to go  
  
in different directions, she stopped.  
  
Conner gave her a quick kiss. "I love you. I'll see you in English."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I love you, too. Bye." Conner kissed her again, and  
  
walked off. Elizabeth took a deep breath, and walked in the direction  
  
of her locker. It was going to be a long day.  
  
***********************************************************  
  
Jessica shuffled through her binder before the homeroom bell rang,  
  
trying to find her assignment for calculus. She was so engrossed in finding  
  
it, that she didn't even realize that another person had walked up  
  
beside her.  
  
"Hello Jessica." Will smiled, looking into her eyes as she looked up.  
  
"Hello Will." Jessica said cooly.  
  
Will continued, unfazed. "So, would you like to go out on Friday  
  
night?"  
  
Jessica narrowed her eyes. "No way. I hate your guts, the way you treat  
  
me and Melissa. I also have a boyfriend."  
  
"Jess…"  
  
"Go away Will. I don't want you in my life." Jessica walked away from  
  
him. She had more important things to worry about then Will Simmons.  
  
Will Simmons  
  
After thinking about it for almost an hour, I have come to the  
  
conclusion that I am an idiot. All the things I've done this year, how I've  
  
bounced between Jessica and Melissa, and hurt both of them. Only an idiot  
  
would do that and expect them to forgive him. Maybe I need to stop  
  
trying to get Jessica to forgive me, and just try to make her realize that  
  
Aames is a jerk. I never did like him, anyway 


	5. Breaking Point

Chapter Four  
  
Breaking Point  
  
That afternoon, Elizabeth walked down the halls of SVH toward her  
  
locker. Most students had already cleared out, but Elizabeth had had to meet  
  
with Mrs. Dalton to get the assignment that she'd missed the day  
  
before.  
  
Besides, it didn't matter if she was right out the door or not. Jessica  
  
had cheerleading practice, so she would have to be back in two hours.  
  
Elizabeth shoved her French book into her locker, and took out her  
  
physics book, the book they were reading in English, and her creative  
  
writing homework, as well as the drafts of her article for the Oracle. Why  
  
was it that the one night that she didn't want to deal with anything, she  
  
had a mountain of homework to do?  
  
Elizabeth sighed, oblivious of the person walking up behind her. She  
  
roughly shoved her books in her messenger bag.  
  
"Hi."  
  
Elizabeth turned around, surprised to see Conner standing there,  
  
jiggling his keys in his hand.  
  
Elizabeth smiled, and slammed her locker shut. "I assume you want to  
  
know if I need a ride. Sorry, Jess has practice, so I get to wait around  
  
for her."  
  
Conner took her bag from her, and wrapped his arm around her waist.  
  
"Taken care of. Jess has her set of keys with her. I had Tia inquire."  
  
Elizabeth nodded, and rested her head against his shoulder. It had been  
  
a long day, and she still had to talk to her dad that evening. The  
  
fireworks would soon be exploding.  
  
************************************************************  
  
Elizabeth looked nervously at the clock. Her dad was supposed to be  
  
home at any minute, and she knew that she'd decided to tell him as soon as  
  
he got home. At that moment, she saw his car pull up in the driveway.  
  
Elizabeth took a deep breath, and walked out of her room. She paused  
  
before walking down the stairs, then walked down cautiously. Ned was in  
  
the kitchen with her mother. Elizabeth entered the room.  
  
"Dad?"  
  
Ned smiled warmly at his daughter. "Hi honey. How are you doing?"  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip. "I need to talk to you."  
  
Her father's brow furrowed, and he nodded. "Okay. Just let me change."  
  
Elizabeth nodded, and left the room. She sat down on the couch in the  
  
living room. About five minutes later, her dad walked in and sat down  
  
across from her.  
  
"So, what do you want to talk about?"  
  
The moment of truth had arrived.  
  
"Dad," Elizabeth started, "I know that you won't approve of what is  
  
going on, so please just let me talk and don't interrupt." She didn't let  
  
him answer, and rushed on. "I'm pregnant."  
  
Ned stared at her in disbelief, but only for a few seconds. "What!" he  
  
roared.  
  
"I'm…"  
  
Ned cut her off. "I heard you! What the hell were you thinking?"  
  
"Dad…"  
  
"You listen to me, young lady. What made you think that you were ready  
  
to do have sex in the first place?" Dammit, you're only seventeen!" He  
  
spat, eyes flashing.  
  
"Dad, let me explain."  
  
"No, let me talk! You aren't old enough to be doing that! I don't even  
  
want to know what was going through your head!"  
  
"Please, dad, Conner and I never meant for this to happen."  
  
"Conner!" Her dad shook his head. "I never trusted that boy in the  
  
first place. Now look what he's done, getting you knocked up!"  
  
"Dad, it's just as much my fault as his."  
  
"You're right. You're responsible for your own actions. And I won't  
  
condone what you've done."  
  
"Dad..." Elizabeth tried, but her father cut her off again.  
  
"Your mother and I tried to raise you right, but you've turned into  
  
every other street kid! You'll be a teenage mother, with a baby whose  
  
father won't every be there."  
  
"Conner's not like that!"  
  
"I'm not going to support a teenage mother. You're out."  
  
Elizabeth took in a sharp breath. He couldn't mean it, could he? "What  
  
do you mean?"  
  
Ned's eyes were cold. "Go upstairs and pack your things. You aren't  
  
living here anymore."  
  
Elizabeth got up from her seat, and walked blindly towards the stairs,  
  
her eyes filling with tears. She'd know that her dad would be upset,  
  
but she never thought that he'd kick her out of the house.  
  
Jessica was leaning against the door of her bedroom, waiting for her  
  
sister. The expression on her face made it obvious to tell that she'd  
  
listened to the explosives. Wordlessly, she wrapped her sister up in a  
  
hug, and then led Elizabeth into her room.  
  
"Go ahead and pack some stuff. I'm going to call Conner and tell him  
  
what's going on. Maybe you can crash there for a day or two. I'll try to  
  
talk to dad once he cools down." Jessica disappeared into her own room.  
  
Conner heard the phone ring, and checked the time. Probably Elizabeth,  
  
calling to tell him how her dad reacted. He picked it up on the second  
  
ring. "Hello?"  
  
"Conner? This is Jessica."  
  
"Jess?"  
  
"We've got a slight problem at our house. Dad totally lost it with Liz,  
  
and he's kicking her out."  
  
Conner felt his heart thud against his chest, and blurted out words  
  
before thinking. "I'll come over and get her. I'm sure mom will let her  
  
stay here for awhile."  
  
Jessica walked back into Elizabeth's room, only to see that her sister  
  
hadn't moved from the spot she'd been in five minutes before.  
  
"Conner's going to come over and get you. He said that you could  
  
probably stay with them for a few days. Come on, I'll help you get your  
  
stuff."  
  
Conner parked his car in the Wakefield's driveway. He took a deep  
  
breath, then started to get out, but Elizabeth slipped out the door.  
  
He walked over to her. "Hey."  
  
Elizabeth felt Conner gently wrap his arms around her. She immediately  
  
felt calmed. He pulled away and took her bag. "It's going to be okay  
  
Liz."  
  
Elizabeth didn't speak, just got in his car and waited for him to toss  
  
her bag in the trunk. Conner got in, and started the engine. "Thanks."  
  
Conner nodded. "It's my fault too."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. She knew exactly what he was talking about.  
  
************************************************************  
  
"Mom?" Conner asked, poking his head in his mother's bedroom.  
  
"Come on in, Conner."  
  
Conner came in, surprised to see her sitting on her bed. "Mom, it's  
  
about Liz."  
  
"I figured. What happened?"  
  
"She told her dad, and he freaked. Then he kicked her out of the  
  
house."  
  
Mrs. Sandborn nodded. "She can stay here as long as she needs to.  
  
Elizabeth is such a sweet girl. It's a shame that she has to go through with  
  
this."  
  
Conner couldn't believe that his mother had picked up on it so fast.  
  
"Thanks. Can she stay in the guest room?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
Conner walked up the stairs, and into his room where Elizabeth was  
  
waiting on his bed. "Mom said you can stay as long as you need too." He sat  
  
down next to her, and hugged her.  
  
"God, I can't believe my dad did that. I never thought that he would do  
  
that. I thought that he'd at least understand what happened."  
  
"Don't think about it. Let's get you set up, okay? You look like you  
  
could use some rest." Conner said, picking up her bag.  
  
"Fine. It's going to be a long day, and it's time that we tell our  
  
friends the whole story." 


	6. She's My Girl

Chapter Five  
  
She's My Girl  
  
Conner McDermott  
  
Whenever something bad happens, why is that it keeps getting worse?  
  
It's bad enough that Elizabeth is pregnant, but her dad kicking her out of  
  
the house? How much can she take? I feel horrible, because this is  
  
mostly my fault. You're saying, why? She had the right to say no. Well, she  
  
did, but that's not the point. It's not like she can get herself  
  
pregnant. Okay, that sounded bad. But you know what I mean. I just feel so  
  
bad for all that's happened.  
  
Jessica Wakefield:  
  
I can't believe that dad kicked Liz out of the house. I knew that he'd  
  
be mad, but I never thought that he'd kick her out. Come on, he's going  
  
to have to try to realize what she's going through. Thank God Mrs.  
  
Sandborn is helping them out so much. Conner called and said that it was  
  
okay that Liz could stay there for as long as she needed. Thank God for  
  
that.  
  
********************************************************************  
  
Conner woke up on Thursday morning, and for a few seconds, everything  
  
seemed normal. But then reality hit, and he got out of bed to get  
  
Elizabeth up. He opened up the bathroom door, and crossed through to her  
  
room. She was still asleep, curled up under a blanket. He sat down on her  
  
bed.  
  
"Liz, sweetie, wake up." Conner said, gently shaking her shoulder.  
  
Elizabeth rolled over and pulled the blanket over her head.  
  
"Go away."  
  
Conner sighed, and pulled the blanket down. "We have to go to school."  
  
Elizabeth sat up and rubbed her eyes. "I don't want to."  
  
"Neither do I, but we have to." Conner wrapped his arms around her, but  
  
Elizabeth pulled back.  
  
"I don't feel so great."  
  
Conner looked at her, his green eyes filled with concern. "Are you  
  
going to be sick?"  
  
Elizabeth didn't answer, but got up and made her way to the bathroom. A  
  
few seconds later, he heard her gagging. He walked in, and silently  
  
kneeled down next her. Conner waited until she was finished.  
  
"Are you okay now?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded weakly, then leaned against him. "I still don't feel  
  
the greatest."  
  
Conner nodded, and helped her up. "You need to go back to bed. I'll  
  
have mom call you in sick. You really don't look well enough to go to  
  
school."  
  
Elizabeth shook her head, about to protest that she'd feel better in a  
  
few minutes, but another wave of nausea hit her. "Okay."  
  
Conner hugged her and kissed her forehead. He felt bad for her,  
  
especially since she felt so sick. "I've got to get ready for school, so I've  
  
got to go."  
  
Elizabeth nodded again, and waited for him to leave. This sucked.  
  
*******************************************************************  
  
Conner searched the hallway, hoping to see Jessica before homeroom.  
  
He'd called her last night, after Elizabeth had gone to sleep, but she  
  
needed to know that her sister was sick. There she was at the end of the  
  
hall.  
  
"Hey, Jess!"  
  
Jessica turned around, and smiled to see Conner. "Where's Liz?"  
  
"She hurled twice this morning, so she stayed home sick."  
  
"Oh. Is she okay?"  
  
Conner shrugged. "I guess it's just morning sickness. My mom said that  
  
she'd call her in sick."  
  
Jessica nodded, and slammed her locker shut. "I've got to get to class.  
  
Tell Liz that I have to work tonight, but I'll come over afterwards.  
  
Okay?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Jessica turned the Jeep quickly into the House of Java parking lot. She  
  
had spent to much time talking to Melissa after school, and was now  
  
late for work. She hopped out and rushed in the door, and into the back  
  
room. "Ally, sorry I'm late."  
  
Ally smiled. "It's okay. It's slow out there."  
  
Jessica walked out, and saw Jeremy walk out of the back room. "Hey  
  
Jess." he said, putting another box of cheesecake in the refrigerator.  
  
Jessica smiled. "I didn't know that you were working today."  
  
"Oh, Danny called in sick this morning, so Ally asked me to fill in."  
  
he said, leaning over to give her a kiss.  
  
"I wasn't complaining."  
  
Jeremy laughed, and quickly kissed her again. At that point, a crowd of  
  
girls walked in, and Jessica pulled back so she could take their  
  
orders.  
  
********************************************************************  
  
Jessica looked anxiously at the clock, waiting for it to hit six. Then  
  
she could leave. She and Jeremy had had a continuous stream of  
  
customers over an hour, and she was exhausted. A few minutes later, Nancy and  
  
Suzanne walked in, signaling that she and Jeremy could leave. She walked  
  
into the back room, and put her apron on the hook. A few seconds later,  
  
Jeremy followed suit. "Hey Jess, do you want to get some drinks then go  
  
out and sit in the courtyard for awhile?"  
  
Jessica nodded. "Okay."  
  
Jeremy smiled. "I've got to refill the Expresso machine, then I have to  
  
use the men's room. You go and get a table. I'll be out in a second."  
  
Jessica nodded, and walked to the door. Even though it past six, the  
  
sun was starting to set, so no one was outside. She chose a table off to  
  
the corner and sat down, breathing in the night air.  
  
"Hello Jessica." A deep male voice said. Jessica spun around, her jaw  
  
dropped when she saw Will Simmons standing in front of her.  
  
Jessica narrowed her eyes. "I thought I told you to leave me alone."  
  
Will tried to walk towards her, but she stepped back.  
  
"Jess, please. All I'm asking for is a second chance." He placed a hand  
  
on her shoulder. Jessica tried to move away, but Will held firm.  
  
"I have a boyfriend. Now let go of me." Jessica protested, but Will  
  
pulled her towards him.  
  
"I never stopped loving you."  
  
"Yeah, well, I never started." Jessica said. At that moment, Will  
  
pressed his lips against hers. Jessica pushed him back. "Get away from me!"  
  
She spun around, but Will wrapped an arm around her. His hand landed  
  
squarely on her chest.  
  
"Aames could never care about you the way that I do." He forced her to  
  
turn around, moving his hand down to her hip. Jessica tried to move  
  
away, but couldn't.  
  
"You never cared about me. Jeremy loves me." Will pulled back his  
  
hands, then gave her a shove. Jessica stumbled and nearly fell down.  
  
"Leave her alone Simmons. Now." Jeremy walked around him, and help  
  
Jessica steady herself. "Are you okay?" he asked her softly. Jessica  
  
nodded. Jeremy turned back around.  
  
"Listen Will, stop bothering Jessica. She's made it perfectly clear  
  
that she doesn't want you interfering with her life." Jeremy said in a  
  
calm voice.  
  
"How do you know what she wants?"  
  
"Because she's my girlfriend." That did it. Will back away, then pulled  
  
back and punched Jeremy square in the face. Jeremy stumbled back, but  
  
then recovered.  
  
Will moved back, but it was too late. Jeremy delivered a punch right in  
  
the jaw. Will didn't even pause before he hit Jeremy again.  
  
Jeremy paused, and looked to make sure Jessica was okay. Then he sent  
  
Will flying.  
  
Jessica watched as her boyfriend and her ex battled it out. She bit her  
  
lip, praying that Jeremy would be okay. She drew in sharply when Jeremy  
  
stumbled backwards.  
  
"Jeremy…" She said, but then she saw her boyfriend give Will a punch  
  
that knocked him down. He tried to stand, but it was apparent that Jeremy  
  
was winning this one. He delivered one final punch before Jeremy hit  
  
him so hard Jessica heard a cracking sound. Will fell backwards, and  
  
didn't stand up.  
  
Jeremy turned around and hugged Jessica. "Are you okay?"  
  
Jessica nodded. "But you don't look like you're okay." There was a  
  
slight smear of blood on his cheek.  
  
"Jess, I didn't mean to do that. I can understand if you're mad at me."  
  
Jessica shook her head. "Why would I be mad? He threw the first punch.  
  
Now let's go and get you cleaned up."  
  
Jeremy wrapped his arm around her waist, and they walked towards the  
  
courtyard gate. At that moment, Will shakily stood up. Limping, he tried  
  
to move towards him.  
  
"I'm going to hurt you, Aames. You're going to regret that you ever did  
  
that to me." 


	7. Plans for the Future

Chapter Six  
  
Plans for the Future  
  
Conner looked at his watch and grimaced. It was five after six, which  
  
meant that he'd been helping Tia with her pre-calc homework for over an  
  
hour. He'd had a guitar lesson after school, and had promised Tia to  
  
help her with her homework afterwards. He's already explained it twice,  
  
and she still wasn't getting it.  
  
Tia looked at her workbook and sighed. "But what you said makes no  
  
sense!" she exclaimed. "There's no x in the problem!"  
  
Conner shook his head. "Tee, x is what you use to find the square root  
  
of the curve. You have to figure out what x stands for to find out what  
  
y stands for."  
  
"So Mr. Know-it-all, how do you find that?"  
  
Conner sighed. He'd been over that twice. "Do the equation without the y."  
  
Tia went back over the steps. "Yeah."  
  
"Now find one forth of that."  
  
Tia narrowed her eyes. "Why?"  
  
"Because. Blank equals one fourth times one."  
  
Tia frowned, then looked at the problem. Now it made sense. She quickly  
  
worked out the steps. "Sixty-eight degrees!" She said in triumph.  
  
"Exactly." Conner stood up, and grabbed his jacket, but Tia stopped  
  
him. "Wait a second, you're going to stay and make sure that I get the next one."  
  
Conner sighed. "I want to go and see how Liz is doing."  
  
Tia rolled her eyes. "Jess said that it was just a cold. You're girl's fine. Now help me."  
  
Should I tell her? Conner thought. He'd wanted to earlier, but had  
  
chicken out. Might as well. She was going to know soon enough.  
  
"Actually Tee, there's more than that."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
Conner bit his lip. "Liz is pregnant."  
  
"What!" Tia screeched.  
  
"I said that she's pregnant. It was an accident."  
  
"No shit!" Tia hissed. "What are you going to do?"  
  
"I don't know! But she's staying with my family. Her dad freaked when  
  
she told him, and kicked her out of the house."  
  
Tia's jaw dropped. "Poor Liz!"  
  
"I know. Now can I go? I need to check on her. She was throwing up this morning."  
  
Jessica stopped by Jeremy's car. It was dark out, and she could see his  
  
face in the haze of a streetlight. He had a cut on his cheek, and two  
  
darkening bruises on an eye and his jaw. There was a little drip of  
  
blood at the corner of his mouth, and his lip was cracked.  
  
"You poor thing. Are you okay to drive home?"  
  
Jeremy nodded. "Yeah." He walked towards his door. "I'm fine. I'll call  
  
you in an hour, after I've cleaned my face up and showered."  
  
Jessica gave him a kiss; careful to make sure she didn't hurt him. "All  
  
right." She walked toward the Jeep and gave him a half wave. Then she  
  
got in and pulled out of the parking lot. An hour would give her just  
  
enough time to check on Liz and then get home.  
  
Conner pulled his Mustang into his driveway. He checked his watch. It  
  
was a quarter after six, and he was glad that he could finally see  
  
Elizabeth. She'd been asleep when he'd stopped by to get his guitar. He got  
  
out and locked the door, at that moment, he saw a white Jeep coming up  
  
the road. No doubt it was Jessica, coming to see her sister. Conner  
  
waited for her to pull in.  
  
"Hi Conner. Can I come in and see Liz?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
Conner walked up the path, Jessica right behind him. He unlocked the  
  
door, and crossed the foyer. Elizabeth was inside, sitting at the kitchen table.  
  
Conner walked over and kissed her. "Are you doing better?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded, and smiled brightly when she saw her sister. "Hi Jess."  
  
Jessica smiled. "Hey. How are things going?"  
  
Elizabeth sighed, watching as her sister and Conner each sat down. "Not  
  
the greatest. I tried to call dad and talk, but he hung up on me."  
  
Jessica bit her lip. "Mom said she was going to call you later. She's  
  
upset with dad. She can't believe that he kicked you out. She said that  
  
now was the time that you needed them most."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. She did need her parent's support. "Yeah. I hope that  
  
I can work things out with him."  
  
Jessica nodded. "I'm going to try to talk to dad. The worst that he can do is yell at me."  
  
Elizabeth decided to change the subject. At that point Conner stood up.  
  
"I'm going to leave you two alone for awhile. I've got to change." He  
  
got up from the table and walked up to his room.  
  
"So, how was your day?"  
  
Jessica shrugged. "Good for most of the day. But Jeremy and Will got in a fight after work."  
  
Elizabeth's brow furrowed. "What type of fight?"  
  
Jessica grimaced. "A fist fight. Jeremy schooled Will's ass. But I feel  
  
bad, because it was over me. Will was hitting on me, and tried to kiss  
  
me, and when Jeremy told him to back off, Will slugged him."  
  
Elizabeth gasped. "Whoa."  
  
Jessica shook her head. "Jeremy's okay, and I don't care about Will. I  
  
shouldn't be worrying you. I'm going to go. I'll call you later."  
  
*********************************************************  
  
Elizabeth sat on her bed, brushing out her hair, when she heard a knock  
  
on the bathroom door. "Come on in." she said, knowing it was Conner.  
  
He came in and sat down, facing her. She set her hairbrush on her nightstand.  
  
"I think that it's time we talk about what we're going to do."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. There was no argument there. "I agree."  
  
"Things are going to change, and you know what I mean with that. It's  
  
time to decide how to handle this." Elizabeth nodded, and Conner  
  
continued. "No matter what you decide to do, I'm on your side."  
  
Elizabeth took a deep breath. "I don't believe in abortion, and neither  
  
do you. So I assume that means I'm going to have the baby. I can do  
  
that. But that give us two decisions."  
  
Conner nodded. "Adoption or keeping the baby."  
  
"Right. And I'm willing to do either. If you think that adoption's the  
  
better option, I'll make the call. But if you want to raise the baby,  
  
I'm ready for that, too." Conner started to say something, and then  
  
stopped. Elizabeth continued on. "But I know that I can't raise a baby by  
  
myself. If we do decide to keep it, I want them to have both a mother  
  
and a father. And I'm willing to be a mother."  
  
Conner paused. At that moment, he realized that his answer would  
  
determine both Elizabeth's future and his own. "I'm willing to be a father."  
  
He gently pulled her towards him, and held her in his arms. "I want what's best for our baby."  
  
Elizabeth pulled back slowly. "Things are going to change. We'll have  
  
to support and take care of this baby ourselves. My dad's not going to  
  
help at all. He's made that perfectly clear."  
  
Conner nodded. "We'll make it through this."  
  
Elizabeth leaned against his broad chest. "I love you."  
  
Conner wrapped his arms around her. "I love you too. And I know that  
  
things are going to work out in the end." She tilted her face up, and he kissed her.  
  
"And I also know that you'll be a wonderful mother." 


	8. A Select Few

Chapter Seven  
  
A Select Few  
  
Conner woke up early on Friday morning, still in Elizabeth's bed.  
  
They'd talked until almost midnight, talking about the future. He'd fallen  
  
asleep with Elizabeth in his arms. For a moment, he considered going  
  
back to sleep, but decided against. It wasn't a school morning, they had  
  
they day off because of teacher workshops. Not that he was complaining.  
  
Trying to be silent, Conner began to get up, but he caused the bed to  
  
squeak. Elizabeth woke up, and looked at him sleepily. "Good morning,"  
  
she said, half muttering. Conner leaned in and gave her a soft kiss.  
  
"Do you feel better this morning then you did yesterday?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded, and sat up. "I don't have morning sickness, thank God."  
  
Conner nodded, and got off her bed. He offered her a hand. "Want to go  
  
and get some breakfast? I don't know about you, but I'm starving."  
  
"I'm pretty hungry, too." Elizabeth leaned against Conner, and he  
  
wrapped an arm around her waist.  
  
A few minutes later, Elizabeth and Conner appeared in the kitchen,  
  
surprised to see Mrs. Sandborn already in there, banging around pots and pans.  
  
"Good morning, kids!" She greeted them cheerfully. "Do you want some  
  
breakfast? I was making Megan and I some pancakes. I'd be glad to make you some too."  
  
Conner smiled. "Fine with me. Liz?"  
  
Elizabeth smiled. "That sounds great. Thanks Mrs. Sandborn."  
  
"You're welcome, Liz." Mrs. Sandborn said, smiling back. "Also, I  
  
talked to your mom last night, and let her know that it's fine for you to  
  
stay over here for as long as you need."  
  
"You don't know how much I appreciate you letting me stay here."  
  
Elizabeth said quietly. "Did she mention anything about my dad?"  
  
Mrs. Sandborn nodded. "I'm afraid that he's still very angry. You're  
  
mom's been trying to talk to him about it, but he's doesn't want to  
  
listen." Elizabeth's face fell, and Mrs. Sandborn nodded sympathetically.  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. "You don't need to be. After all, he has the right to be mad at  
  
me."  
  
"Well, I feel bad that this is happening to you. But let's drop the  
  
subject for now, okay?" She smiled. "What's done is done, and it's in the past."  
  
***************************************************************  
  
Jessica pulled down the hem slightly of her short, baby blue dress and  
  
cocked her head slightly so she could see her reflection on the glass  
  
on Jeremy's front door. She looked great. She rang the doorbell.  
  
Since they both had the day off from school, Jessica had decided to go  
  
over to Jeremy's house that morning and surprise him with breakfast.  
  
He'd mentioned the night before that Emma and Trisha were sleeping over  
  
at his grandparents, and his parents were visiting some friends in San  
  
Francisco. So she'd picked up food at the bakery nearby and driven over to his house.  
  
Jeremy answered the door, looking like he'd just rolled out of bed. His  
  
hair stuck up on one side, and he was wearing boxers and a wrinkled tee  
  
shirt. He looked around for a minute, and his eyes lit up when he  
  
focused on her. "Jessica!" he exclaimed, smiling. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Jessica smiled. "Bringing my man breakfast." She held up the bakery bag as proof.  
  
"Come on in. Nobody's home, and I just got up."  
  
Jessica walked in, and looked him over. "The just getting up part was apparent."  
  
Jeremy laughed as they walked into the kitchen. He moved over to the  
  
cabinet, and took out two plates as Jessica unloaded the bag's contents.  
  
Jessica looked at him from the side studying his face. "Okay, come over  
  
here. I want to see how bad the damage is."  
  
Jeremy obeyed, and bent his head down. Jessica looked it over. He had a  
  
bad bruise running across the left side of his jaw, and a black eye  
  
bruised a purplish black. The cut on his cheek was starting to scab, and  
  
it formed a long jagged line. His lip was slightly swollen. "You poor  
  
thing." Jessica gave him a little frown. "I don't like my man to get all beaten up."  
  
Jeremy laughed. "Really, it's not as bad as it looks. It barely hurts."  
  
Jessica smiled, and gave him a quick kiss. "Okay, you're going to be  
  
fine, so let's eat. I'm starving." She sat down at the counter, and  
  
Jeremy sat down next to her. He grabbed a bagel and began to drown it in cream cheese.  
  
"Jess, I do have one question. Did you come straight home from work  
  
last night? Because I called when I got home, and your mom said you weren't there."  
  
Jessica grabbed a muffin and gave an absent-minded answer. "Oh, I went  
  
over to Conner's house to check on Liz." At that moment, she realized what she'd said.  
  
Jeremy frown. "Wait a second, I thought that you said your sister was sick yesterday."  
  
Jessica grimaced. Might as well tell him the story, he'd find out soon  
  
enough. "Actually, Elizabeth's living over there for awhile. Um, it  
  
turns out that she's pregnant." Seeing the shocked look on Jeremy's face,  
  
she rushed on. "And when dad found out, he kicked her out of the house.  
  
So she's staying with Conner's family for awhile."  
  
"What? Are you kidding me or something?"  
  
"No, dead serious. It was an accident, and I know Liz is really upset about it."  
  
Jeremy shook his head. "Whoa. That's big news. I wasn't expecting something like that."  
  
Jessica nodded. "Liz told me not to tell anyone, so please don't. I  
  
wasn't supposed to tell you. Only a select few know about it."  
  
Jeremy grinned. "Tell me what?"  
  
Conner crossed the bathroom into Elizabeth's room. He'd heard her get  
  
out of the shower about ten minutes before, and hoped she was in the mood to talk.  
  
"Hey baby." He greeted her, moving across the room where she was  
  
brushing out her damp blond hair. Elizabeth turned around and gave him a genuine smile.  
  
"Hey yourself." she gave him a kiss. "So, what's up?"  
  
"Nothing, really, I just wanted to talk." Conner said, sitting down on  
  
her bed. "I forgot to mention it last night, but I told Tia what was happening. I hope that you  
  
don't mind."  
  
Elizabeth shook her head, and gathered her hair in a clip. She turned  
  
to face Conner. "That's one less person that I have to tell."  
  
Conner nodded. "What about everyone else? When are we going to inform them?"  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip, and looked away for a second. "I'm not sure."  
  
"Well, they'll know eventually, as soon as you start gaining weight."  
  
Elizabeth frowned. "I know. But I think that our friends deserve a little more than that."  
  
Conner sighed. "I know. It's just I don't really want to have to deal  
  
with it. It just makes it seem too real."  
  
"Well, it is real, and it's our future, so we're going to have to take care of it." Elizabeth  
  
said softly.  
  
Conner nodded. "Of course I know that. It's just it's pretty big news.  
  
Not something that we can just yell out over the lunch table."  
  
Elizabeth laughed. "Yeah, that's the best approach." Conner smiled.  
  
"Anyway, I'll probably need to go over to Tia's sometimes today. Tia,  
  
Maria and I need to work on our French project."  
  
*********************************************************************  
  
That afternoon, Elizabeth walked up Tia's driveway, and up the front  
  
step. The door swung open before Elizabeth even rang the doorbell. "Hi  
  
Liz. Let's go up to my room. Maria just called and said she'd be a few minutes late."  
  
"Okay." She followed Tia as she bounced down the hall towards her room.  
  
Once there, she shut the door, crossed the room, and plopped down on  
  
her bed. "Conner told me what's going on. It's too bad."  
  
Elizabeth gave Tia a small smile, and sat down next to her. "You're one  
  
of a select few to know."  
  
"Are you mad at Conner for telling?"  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. "One less person for me to tell. I'm sure  
  
everyone will find out soon enough."  
  
Tia nodded. "It's a shock. I barely believed him at first."  
  
"Funny, that's been a lot of people's reactions."  
  
Tia smiled. "How long have you known?"  
  
"Only since Tuesday, so not that long. I'm about four weeks along."  
  
Elizabeth said, anticipating that would have been her next question.  
  
"Do you know what you're going to do yet."  
  
Elizabeth paused, not knowing whether she should tell what they were  
  
thinking about. "Well, I think we might end up keeping the baby."  
  
Tia nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. But it's still hard to  
  
believe that you're pregnant…" Tia's voice trailed off, her eyes glued on  
  
the door.  
  
Elizabeth looked up. Maria was leaning against the door frame, eyes  
  
wide, mouth gaping in shock. "You're pregnant?" 


	9. Do Some Explaining

Chapter Eight  
  
Do Some Explaining  
  
Elizabeth looked away, wishing to be anywhere but Tia's bedroom. She  
  
finally willed herself to look at Maria then nodded. "Yeah, I'm pregnant."  
  
Maria shook her head in disbelief. "But… how?"  
  
"Well, Maria, I think that it all starts with the birds and the bees."  
  
Tia said, snickering slightly.  
  
Elizabeth put a hand out to shush Tia. "Maria, I didn't tell you that  
  
Conner and I… well… you know. And it kind of went wrong."  
  
Maria walked over and sat down next to Elizabeth on Tia's bed. "How  
  
long have you known?"  
  
"Since Tuesday."  
  
Maria shook her head again, as if to let the information sink in. "Do your parents know?"  
  
"Yeah." Elizabeth said quietly. "Dad freaked when he found out, and he  
  
kicked me out of the house. I'm staying with Conner's family for awhile."  
  
Maria looked at her again. "Whoa. I never thought that your dad would  
  
do that, no matter what you did." She shook her head. "But then I never  
  
thought that you'd lose your virginity before we were out of high school."  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. "Maria, God! I thought that you'd be the last  
  
person to lecture me on the decisions that I make."  
  
"No, Liz, really. I'm not giving you a lecture. I'm just shocked with  
  
what happened." Maria stated. "I never meant to be rude."  
  
Elizabeth smiled slightly. "Sorry, I overreacted a little. I've had so  
  
many lectures about what happened already. I don't need one from you."  
  
"Hey. I'm behind you no matter what you do. I'm your best friend after  
  
all." Maria said, giving Elizabeth a hug.  
  
************************************************************  
  
Elizabeth walked up the front step to Conner's house, and let herself  
  
in. She'd been fighting off morning sickness for almost an hour, and was  
  
in the mood to just lay down and take a nap. They hadn't accomplished  
  
anything on their French project, and Elizabeth had been more then ready  
  
to leave.  
  
She quickly walked upstairs to her room, and changed into some  
  
sweatpants and an old T-shirt. At that point she noticed a note in the middle  
  
of her bed.  
  
Liz-  
  
Andy wanted me to go to HOJ with him.  
  
I'm going to tell him what's going on. I'll  
  
be home by four. Love you.  
  
Conner  
  
Elizabeth smiled at the sight of Conner's familiar pig scratch. It was  
  
probably better that Andy knew she was pregnant. Besides, she knew that  
  
Andy would be a great friend, and be nice about all that was happening.  
  
Elizabeth was glad that she had such great friends. Maria had even  
  
agreed to tell Ken what was going on.  
  
She was about ready to lay down when a wave of nausea hit her. Instead,  
  
she walked into the bathroom she and Conner shared.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, Elizabeth walked downstairs to the kitchen.  
  
Forget trying to take a nap. She'd decided against it after she threw up  
  
the second time. It was almost getting pathetic. All she really wanted  
  
was to get through one day without throwing up. It didn't look like it  
  
was going to be happening.  
  
She walked over to the cabinet and took out a glass, and then got a  
  
drink of water. Elizabeth wished that Conner was home so she could talk to  
  
him. She sat the water on the table, then walked back up the stairs to  
  
get her creative writing notebook. Might as well get started on her  
  
assignment.  
  
Elizabeth took her notebook out of her backpack and then grabbed a  
  
pencil out of the side pocket. She was about to leave and go downstairs,  
  
when she saw Megan standing in the doorway. "Hi."  
  
"Hey Liz." Megan said politely. "Can I talk to you for a moment?"  
  
"Sure." Elizabeth said, sitting down on her bed. She motioned for Megan  
  
to sit down beside her. "What's up?"  
  
Megan bit her lip. "I just wanted to make sure that I knew what was happening and all."  
  
"You mean, between Conner and I?"  
  
"Yeah. I heard that you were pregnant, and mom told me that you were  
  
going to be staying with us for awhile."  
  
"Dad kicked me out of the house."  
  
Megan looked shocked for a second. "Whoa. I didn't hear that part of  
  
the story. I didn't know that that had happened."  
  
Elizabeth smiled weakly. "It did. I guess you're probably pretty shocked with this all."  
  
"Yeah." Megan sighed. "It's a lot to take in. I can't believe that it's  
  
true. You're so responsible and stuff. And I can't picture Conner as a dad."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I think that he'll make a good one."  
  
"Does that mean that you're going to keep the baby?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded again. "Your brother and I talked about it for a long  
  
time last night. We both think that that would be best."  
  
"I just kind of wanted to hear it from you. It's so unreal, almost."  
  
Megan said. "But I think that you'll make good parents."  
  
************************************************************  
  
Conner walked up the stairs, and knocked on the door to Elizabeth's  
  
room. He'd told Andy what had happened, and it had gone well. Andy been  
  
really nice about it, and had said that he thought that they were doing  
  
the right thing.  
  
"Come in." she said softly. Conner walked in and saw her sitting at the  
  
desk, writing in her notebook.  
  
"I told Andy. He's cool with it." Conner said, crossing the room. He  
  
saw that she was working on her creative writing assignment. "How are you doing?"  
  
"Okay. I got sick earlier this afternoon, but I feel better now." She  
  
bit her lip. "Maria knows, she heard Tia and I talking about it."  
  
Conner sat down on her bed. "At least she knows."  
  
Elizabeth got up and sat down on his lap. "Thank God our friends have  
  
all been understanding."  
  
"Yeah." He said, giving her a soft kiss.  
  
"I talked to Megan, too. I told her what we decided."  
  
"How'd she take it?"  
  
"Pretty well." Elizabeth leaned her head against his shoulder. "She's  
  
still in shock. But wouldn't you be, too, if you were in her situation?"  
  
Conner nodded. "Like if she told me she was pregnant or something, I  
  
would have freaked, and probably killed the guy that got her that way."  
  
Elizabeth smiled. "I can picture you doing that. But I don't think that  
  
you'll have to worry about Megan getting pregnant."  
  
"I never thought that I'd worry about you being pregnant." He said  
  
quietly. Elizabeth knew what he meant instantly. She knew that he still  
  
couldn't believe that it was happening to her, them.  
  
"It's weird, isn't it?"  
  
Conner nodded, and gently placed his hand on her stomach. In eight  
  
months, they were going to have a baby to take care of. "So much has  
  
changed since we first met."  
  
"Things are going to keep changing." She added, reading his mind. "Our  
  
future is going to be different."  
  
Conner ran a hand through her hair. "What about college?"  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip. "I'm still planning on going, and you should be  
  
too. All of the schools offer parenting dorms."  
  
"One of us can do night school, so someone can always be with the  
  
baby." Conner added. "My mom will be willing to help."  
  
"So will Jess. We were both planning to go to the same college anyway."  
  
Conner gave her another kiss. "We'll work things out, Liz. There's a  
  
reason why this is happening now, so we'll make the best of it."  
  
"You think?" She asked.  
  
Conner nodded. "Everything's going to work out. You'll have the baby,  
  
we'll go to college, and we'll raise the baby together." He wrapped his  
  
arms around her.  
  
"You make everything that sound so simple." She said softly.  
  
"I know that it's so much more complicated then that, but everything  
  
will be okay in the long run." 


	10. A Close Second

Chapter Nine  
  
A Close Second  
  
ONE MONTH LATER…………  
  
Elizabeth Wakefield  
  
I can't believe that I'm two months pregnant. I think I'm still in  
  
shock. Things aren't any better with my dad, even now. I've tried to talk  
  
to him at various occasions, but it's not helping. He won't even talk to  
  
me. Mom's been as supportive as she can, without getting in a fight  
  
with dad. I've talked to Jess about it, and she said that things are  
  
really strained between them, and they've had some fights. Mrs. Sandborn has  
  
been great about everything. Conner and I talked with her about the  
  
decisions that we'd made, and she's behind us all the way. Thank God for  
  
that. All of our friends know by now, and Mom said that it was just a  
  
matter of time until we had to tell the school what's going on. I also  
  
need to tell my boss at Sedona what's going on. I've been sick all the  
  
time, so it's getting harder to hide, plus I've gained quite a bit of  
  
weight. Conner's been really sweet about everything. I don't know how I'd  
  
get through this without him. But I know that we have avoided one !  
  
subject. Neither one of us has mentioned that we didn't use protection.  
  
I told Jess about it, but that's it. I know that it bothers Conner,  
  
because this all could have been prevented.  
  
Conner McDermott  
  
Liz is two months pregnant. In only seven months we are going to be  
  
parents. I'm scared out of my mind. I'm not really worried about Liz as a  
  
mom, because I know that she'll be a great one. She's been really sick,  
  
and I feel bad that she even has to go through it. I still can't  
  
believe that this is happening.  
  
************************************************************  
  
Elizabeth walked across the foyer of Conner's house one afternoon.  
  
She'd went straight from school to a nightmare shift at Sedona. The place  
  
had been really busy, and she'd felt sick the whole time. At least  
  
school was out for Christmas break. They had two and a half weeks off that  
  
year, and Elizabeth was thankful. She'd gotten sick almost every day for  
  
the last month, and it was getting hard to hide that during school.  
  
Elizabeth knew that she wouldn't be able to hide it much longer, either.  
  
She'd already began to gain weight.  
  
Won't that be interesting? Elizabeth thought, smiling slightly. She  
  
could just imagine the looks on her teacher's faces as she broke the news.  
  
"Megan, is that you?" she heard a voice call. Mrs. Sandborn walked down  
  
the staircase, and smiled when she saw Elizabeth. "Hello Liz. How are you doing?"  
  
"Oh, okay I guess." Elizabeth replied.  
  
Mrs. Sandborn looked concerned. "Are you feeling sick?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "Since early this afternoon."  
  
"I know what that's like, I was sick all the time when I was pregnant  
  
with Conner." Mrs. Sandborn said in understanding, "It'll get better."  
  
"I hope so." Elizabeth sighed.  
  
"So, have you told any of your teachers yet?" Mrs. Sandborn asked,  
  
walking over to the refrigerator.  
  
"No." Elizabeth admitted. "I know that I need to, and soon. I'm already  
  
starting to gain weight."  
  
Mrs. Sandborn looked over to her, and pulled at soda out of the fridge.  
  
"It's not too noticeable."  
  
"Sure that you're telling the truth?"  
  
"Positive. Trust me, you look fine." Mrs. Sandborn laughed, and gave  
  
Elizabeth a hug. "You know? I glad that Conner found you. Things might  
  
not be the greatest, but I'm sure everything will work out."  
  
**********************************************************  
  
Elizabeth heard the door to Conner's room shut, so she cut across the  
  
bathroom, and walked into his room. He was laying down on his bed. "Hey  
  
Conner." She said, sitting down on the edge.  
  
Conner sat up, and gave her a kiss. "Are you feeling better?" he asked.  
  
He knew that she'd felt sick earlier at school.  
  
"Not much, but I don't think I'm going to throw up again."  
  
Conner smiled. "Thank God for the small things."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Conner pulled her into his lap. "So, what's going on?"  
  
"Nothing, really. I'm glad it's Christmas break." She said, lying her  
  
head on his shoulder. "But when we go back, I know that it's time to  
  
tell our teachers."  
  
"Well, let's not worry about that now. Let's just enjoy our time off."  
  
Conner agreed. "Did you have another chance to talk to your dad?"  
  
Elizabeth sighed. "I wish. I tried calling him about ten minutes ago.  
  
He hung up on me. I wish he could just understand what I'm going  
  
through." She bit her lip. "I knew that he'd be upset, but I didn't think that  
  
he'd go so far as to kick me out of the house. The one time in my life  
  
when I need him the most, he completely abandons me."  
  
Conner nodded, and studied her face. He could tell that she was about  
  
ready to cry. She'd been trying to make things okay with her father, but  
  
he wasn't willing to.  
  
"Liz, don't cry. You'll work something out, I'm sure." Conner said  
  
reassuringly, wrapping his arms tighter around her.  
  
"I guess you're right." Elizabeth said quietly, trying to believe it.  
  
"I guess it just seems to make everything that's going on so much  
  
harder."  
  
Conner nodded. "I'm sure that your dad will realize that you're already  
  
paying enough for what happened."  
  
"I hope so. I just want his support more than anything." Elizabeth said.  
  
"I know." Conner gave her a quick kiss.  
  
Elizabeth smiled slightly. "You don't know how much I appreciate your  
  
mom letting me stay here. I don't know where I'd be if it wasn't for her."  
  
"She likes having you here. Actually, I think that she just likes you.  
  
Thinks your good for me or something." Conner gave her a wry smile. "So  
  
I guess that you might just have to stay."  
  
Elizabeth laughed, and smiled at him. "Nice to know that."  
  
********************************************  
  
"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way," Megan sang out  
  
happily the next day, as she brought up another box of tree ornaments from  
  
the basement.  
  
"Oh what fun it is to ride on one horse open sleigh!" Elizabeth chimed  
  
in, laughing. They were trying to set up the Sandborn's Christmas tree.  
  
Megan had asked if she and Conner wanted to help, and since Elizabeth  
  
wasn't feeling sick, she'd said yes. Conner said that it was girl's work  
  
and had retreated to his room.  
  
Megan sat the box down, and smiled at Elizabeth. "Okay, that's the last  
  
box. Do you want to tackle putting up the tree?"  
  
"Sure." Elizabeth looked around the room. "And what box would that be in?"  
  
Megan smiled. "I think that it's that one over… there!" She pointed to  
  
a long, narrow box. "We have to assemble it."  
  
"Great. I happen to be great at assembling Christmas trees." Elizabeth  
  
replied sarcastically.  
  
Thirty minutes later, Megan pushed the last branch into place. She  
  
looked over and smiled at Elizabeth. "Okay, we're done with that. Now,"  
  
Megan looked around, "We need to find the one with the lights."  
  
"For the tree?"  
  
"Yeah." Megan replied. "We used to put them up on the house, but the  
  
Christmas Conner was fourteen, he and Tia were putting them up, and he  
  
fell off the ladder and broke his ankle."  
  
Elizabeth couldn't help giggling slightly at the image.  
  
"Hey, I didn't fall- Tia pushed me." And indignant male voice complained.  
  
Elizabeth turned around to see Conner leaning against the doorframe.  
  
He crossed the room, and picked up a large blue box. "They're in here  
  
Sandy." He handed it to her.  
  
Megan smiled. "Want to help?"  
  
Conner shrugged. "Nothing better to do." He sat down, opened the box,  
  
and began to untangle strings of lights. "Hey, Liz, can you plug that  
  
in?" He tossed her and extension cord.  
  
Elizabeth smiled, looking at Conner and Megan happily argue over  
  
whether to put white lights or colored lights on the tree. It wasn't home,  
  
but it did come in a close second. 


	11. Merry Christmas

Chapter Ten  
  
Merry Christmas  
  
"It was really nice of you to help Megan put up decorations." Elizabeth  
  
turned around in the desk chair, surprised to see Conner leaning  
  
against the door frame.  
  
"It was fun." She answered simply. Elizabeth shut her journal and left  
  
it on the desk where she'd been writing in it. "Megan's my friend. I  
  
like to do things with her."  
  
Conner nodded. "It still was nice of you spend you're day doing that."  
  
"Really, I don't mind." Elizabeth stated, walking across the room towards Conner.  
  
Conner pulled her in for a kiss. "So, you haven't felt sick yet today?"  
  
"No," Elizabeth smiled. "Fortunately. I've been sick almost everyday  
  
for a over a month now."  
  
Conner kissed her again. "That's good. I don't like to see you sick."  
  
He smiled.  
  
"Yeah, I don't like to see me sick, either." Conner laughed, and she  
  
continued. "Anyway, Jess said that she'll probably come over this evening."  
  
"Oh, did you talk to her earlier?"  
  
Elizabeth sighed, "Yeah, I did. And she and mom tried to convince dad  
  
to at least let me come over for Christmas, but he isn't budging in the  
  
slightest. Jessica has gone so far to resort to not talking to him."  
  
Conner shook his head. "Can't even make an exception for the holidays."  
  
"I know. I wish that I'd be home, with my family, for Christmas."  
  
Elizabeth said, frowning. Conner wrapped an arm around her waist, and began  
  
to direct her out of her room and then down the stairs. "Yeah, I guess  
  
I know what you mean. I know that I want to be with my family at  
  
Christmas." Conner stopped when they were in the kitchen. "But believe me, I  
  
don't mind spending it with you, and I know that Mom and Megan will  
  
love having you around."  
  
Conner a bag of sliced turkey and some cheese out of the refrigerator,  
  
and sat them on the counter. Elizabeth, meanwhile, was getting some  
  
plates out of the cabinet. At that moment, the doorbell rang.  
  
"Can you get that, Liz?" Conner asked. "It's probably Jessica anyway."  
  
"Sure." Elizabeth set the plates on the counter, and crossed the foyer  
  
to the front door. She quickly unlocked it, and smiled to see her twin  
  
standing on Conner's front step. "Hi Jess." She said brightly,  
  
motioning for her to come in.  
  
"So, are you doing okay today?" Jessica asked, following Elizabeth into the kitchen.  
  
"Oh, I haven't been sick, if that's what you mean." She gestured  
  
towards the living room. "Megan, Conner and I put up their Christmas decorations."  
  
Elizabeth stopped in the kitchen, where Conner had already assembled a  
  
sandwich and was stuffing his face. He mumbled a greeting.  
  
"Hey Conner." Jess said politely.  
  
"Hey Jess," Conner said, swallowing. "Eat if you want."  
  
After eating and talking with Conner for awhile, Elizabeth and Jessica  
  
excused themselves to go up to Elizabeth's room. Jessica had said that  
  
she wanted to talk to Elizabeth about something, and Elizabeth knew  
  
that her sister didn't want Conner to hear.  
  
Elizabeth sat down on her bed, and Jessica plopped down right in front  
  
of her, so that they were facing each other. Elizabeth smiled at her  
  
sister. "So, what urgent matter did you just have to talk to me about?" She teased.  
  
Jessica stuck out her tongue. "Well, I guess I just needed your advice  
  
from someone that's done it."  
  
"And?" Elizabeth prompted.  
  
"It's about me and Jeremy…" Jessica bit her lip. "Okay. Every time we  
  
start kissing, and then making out, and then it keeps going…" she  
  
trailed off.  
  
"So you're basically leading up to the fact that you think that you and  
  
Jeremy might end up sleeping together?" Elizabeth said, beating Jessica  
  
to the point.  
  
Jessica bit her lip again. It was perfectly logical that Elizabeth  
  
would be able to read her mind in a time like this. "Yeah, I think that would be it."  
  
"And you're waiting for me to tell you whether to go for it or not?"  
  
Elizabeth asked, reading her sister's thoughts to the letter.  
  
Jessica nodded. That's basically what she was doing.  
  
"Jess, you have to make that decision for yourself, and you know that." Elizabeth said gently.  
  
Jessica sighed. "I just wanted your input, because look what happened  
  
when you and Conner hooked up. You're the one that ended up pregnant."  
  
"I know that, believe me." Elizabeth gave her sister a slight smile.  
  
"Please Liz, will you at least tell me how to go about this?" Jessica  
  
pleaded. Her sister could be extremely stubborn when she wanted to be.  
  
"Talk to Jeremy about it. I know that he'll be understanding about it."  
  
Elizabeth smirked. "After all, it is Jeremy."  
  
Jessica laughed. Her sister had a point there. "I know that I need to do that."  
  
"Good, and make sure you get his opinion on it. After that, just make  
  
sure you're truly ready, and if you think that you, are, I'm not going to get in your way."  
  
Jessica nodded, "I know that. Thanks Liz." She began to get up, and  
  
crossed over to Elizabeth's door, but stopped suddenly. "And, um, Liz?"  
  
"What?"  
  
Jessica bit her lip. "What's it like?"  
  
Elizabeth smirked. "I knew you'd ask, but my best advice here, is that  
  
it's different for everyone."  
  
"And I knew you'd say that." Jess walked back over and sat on Elizabeth's bed.  
  
Elizabeth smiled. "I guess that we just know each other." She smiled.  
  
"Just make sure that you really love Jeremy," she paused, "and use birth  
  
control, because one pregnant Wakefield is all we need, okay?"  
  
Jessica smiled. How her sister could keep a good sense of humor, she  
  
didn't know. But she had one last question. "Liz, have you and Conner  
  
made a final decision on what you're going to do with the baby?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "We're going to raise it together. We both think that  
  
that's the best option."  
  
Jessica smiled, and hugged her sister. "Thanks Liz, you really helped me out."  
  
With that, she got up and walked out of her sister's room.  
  
***************************************************  
  
On Sunday morning, Elizabeth woke up with a pounding headache and some  
  
severe waves of nausea, almost as if it was making up for the day  
  
before. Almost instantly, she knew that she was going to be sick, and  
  
quickly made her way over to the bathroom. A few minutes later, she was  
  
finished and started to stand.  
  
Elizabeth was surprised when she felt a hand on her should. Conner was  
  
standing in the doorframe, wearing the same boxers and shirt he'd slept  
  
in. She figured he'd heard her getting sick.  
  
"Hey, are you okay now?" He asked, his emerald eyes filled with concern.  
  
"Yeah." Elizabeth didn't even bother to lie. It was probably apparent  
  
from looking at her that she'd been sick.  
  
Conner gave her a quick hug, and followed her into her room. He sat  
  
down on the bed next to her. "I'm going to leave you alone so you can go  
  
back to sleep." He smiled, "Because it's apparent that you need it. But  
  
if you feel up to it later, Tia e-mailed me and asked if we wanted to  
  
go Christmas shopping this afternoon."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "That sounds like fun. I'll just rest now, I'm sure  
  
that I'll be doing better after awhile."  
  
********************************************************  
  
That afternoon, Elizabeth was feeling much better, and she and Conner  
  
had accepted Tia's offer to go shopping. Some of their other friends  
  
were also going- Andy, Maria, Ken, Melissa, Jessica and Jeremy. They'd  
  
agreed to meet in the food court a little after one.  
  
Elizabeth quickly finished braiding her hair, and checked her watch. It  
  
was five till one, so she and Conner would be leaving soon. She tied a  
  
band in her hair, and left her room. Quickly walking down the stairs,  
  
she saw that Conner was already down there.  
  
"Hi Liz," he greeted her. "Doing better?"  
  
"Yeah, a lot better." She smiled. "Are you ready to go?"  
  
Conner nodded. "Yeah." He pulled his keys out of his pocket. "Let's go."  
  
Ten minutes later, Conner parked his Mustang in the parking lot of the  
  
Valley Mall. After unlocking the door, he got out, walked around, and  
  
opened Elizabeth's door for her. At that moment, they saw an old, red,  
  
Mercedes convertible pull in and park two spots away. Conner looked at  
  
it for a moment, and then turned to Elizabeth, a questioning look on his face.  
  
"Jeremy's car." She explained, and noting Jessica had gotten out and  
  
basically bounced over to them. At a slightly more reserved pace, Jeremy  
  
followed behind her.  
  
"Hey Liz!" Jessica called, reaching her sister. Jeremy laughed from  
  
behind them, quickly catching up.  
  
Elizabeth smiled at her sister. "Little perky, aren't you?" she said sarcastically.  
  
"She's been that way all morning, Liz," Jeremy stated. "I've been with  
  
her since six."  
  
Elizabeth and Conner laughed as Jessica pretended to hit him. Jeremy  
  
smiled as he grabbed her arm, and pulled her towards him and Elizabeth  
  
shared a secret smile at her sister.  
  
"Six?" Conner remarked. "Isn't that a bit early?"  
  
Jeremy shrugged. "We both had the early shift at House of Java."  
  
"Yeah, remind me not to work another shift with him." Jessica glared at  
  
him. "He thought that it was funny to dump a cup of coffee on me."  
  
************************************************************  
  
"That's a cute dress." Tia remarked as they passed by Lisette's.  
  
"Yeah, if you want to look like you're dressed in blue saran wrap."  
  
Andy said, snorting back laughter. Tia smacked him on the stomach, and  
  
then looked at Conner.  
  
He shrugged. "Sorry Tee. He's being honest." Tia stuck her tongue out  
  
at them, then had to sidestep to avoid a group of giggling seventh graders.  
  
"Is everybody shopping today?" She said exasperated.  
  
"Well, it is only six days until Christmas." Maria reminded her. "And  
  
there are a lot of holiday sales this weekend."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "Okay, we've been walking around for an hour now.  
  
Where do you guys want to go?"  
  
The guys all immediately shrugged, as well as Maria. "I need to find  
  
something for Angel." Tia piped in. "And I need a new dress for the Riot."  
  
"I do too." Melissa added. "And I need to find something for the brat…  
  
oh, excuse me, my little sister."  
  
Jessica giggled slightly. "Okay, I have Christmas taken care of, but I  
  
need new clothes."  
  
"Same here." Elizabeth agreed. She studied the looks on the guy's  
  
faces. "Why don't you guys go do what ever, and us girls can go by  
  
ourselves?"  
  
Conner, Jeremy, Andy and Ken didn't need second invitations. They took  
  
off in the direction of the food court. "See you in an hour and a half  
  
right here!" Conner called over his shoulder.  
  
"What is it with men and shopping?" Melissa said, rolling her eyes.  
  
"They're afraid of it." Tia said. Laughing, the girls took off in the  
  
direction of the Gap. 


	12. I'll Always Love You

Chapter 11  
  
I'll Always Love You  
  
Elizabeth brushed out her damp blonde hair after she got out of the  
  
shower on Christmas Eve. It was almost ten, and she was about ready to go  
  
to bed. Tomorrow she was going with Conner's family to have dinner at  
  
his grandma's house.  
  
"Hey Liz, can I come in?" She heard Conner call from the other side of  
  
the bathroom door.  
  
"Sure!" She called back, walking towards her bed to turn it down.  
  
Conner walked in and over to her. He wrapped his arms around her from  
  
behind, and kissed her on the cheek.  
  
"Ready to meet my family tomorrow?" Conner asked her.  
  
Elizabeth turned around to face him. "Yeah." Then she bit her lip. "Do  
  
they know about…" she trailed off.  
  
"Most of them." Conner sighed, and sat down on her bed, and pulled her  
  
onto his lap. "I don't think that they'll have a problem with it,  
  
considering my sixteen year old cousin Nicole has a two year old daughter."  
  
A look of surprise crossed Elizabeth's face. "Oh, well, you never told me."  
  
"Yeah." Conner said, "She's a good kid, but ended up sleeping with her  
  
boyfriend when she was thirteen. Nikki just turned sixteen a few days ago."  
  
"Oh, well, I never knew."  
  
"Yeah, it's not a big deal. We all excepted it." Conner stated simply.  
  
"Anyway, we'll be leaving by eight, so I'm going to hit the sack."  
  
Conner gave her a gentle kiss, and then pulled back. "I love you. Sleep  
  
well." He kissed her again, and got up and left.  
  
Elizabeth smiled slightly. At least she knew no matter how bad things  
  
got; she'd always have Conner.  
  
***********************************************************  
  
The next afternoon around three, Conner, Megan, Elizabeth and Mrs.  
  
Sandborn walked back through the front door. They'd been at Mrs. Sandborn's  
  
mother's house since nine thirty, and had left about one thirty.  
  
"So, Elizabeth, what do you think about my crazy family?" Mrs. Sandborn  
  
asked as she sat down hard on the couch.  
  
"Oh, they weren't crazy." She said, smiling. "I thought that they were  
  
very nice people."  
  
Conner sat down on the other couch and pulled his girlfriend down next  
  
to him. "You really didn't think they were weird?" he smirked.  
  
"They weren't weird." Elizabeth insisted.  
  
"Not even when Uncle Roy and Granny got into a turkey eating contest?"  
  
Megan piped in.  
  
Elizabeth couldn't help laughing. "Okay, maybe a little." Then she  
  
laughed again. "But then again, the Wakefield's have some weird traditions."  
  
"Like they can compare to our totally whacked family." Conner laughed.  
  
"Anyway, what time was your sister coming over?"  
  
"Around six." Jessica, Elizabeth's brother, Steven, and his girlfriend,  
  
Billie, were going to come by that evening.  
  
*************************************************************  
  
By the time Jessica, Steven, and Billie had left, it was almost nine,  
  
and Elizabeth was exhausted. She'd started feeling sick a short time  
  
after they'd arrived, but hadn't said anything. Elizabeth hadn't wanted  
  
Steven to pull some concerned, older brother act, so she'd kept quiet.  
  
She knew that her brother was pretty shocked about the whole situation.  
  
He'd always thought of Elizabeth as the mature, responsible twin, and  
  
hadn't expected something like this to happen. And she knew that he  
  
disapproved of what was happening.  
  
Elizabeth walked up to her room, at the quickest past she could muster.  
  
She was so tired that she wasn't in the mood to talk. As soon as she  
  
was in her room, she Elizabeth changed into her baby doll nightie, and  
  
went to turn down her bed.  
  
A few minutes later, she heard a knock at the door. Instinctively, she  
  
knew that it was Conner. "Come on in." She called, sliding into her bed.  
  
"Hey baby." He greeted her, sitting down next to her. "Are you feeling sick?"  
  
"How did you know?"  
  
Conner shrugged. "You were starting to look more then a little tired."  
  
"Oh. Am I that readable?"  
  
"No," he leaned in and kissed her forehead. "I just know you really  
  
well." he smiled. "Your brother and Billie are really nice."  
  
"Yeah," Elizabeth started. "But I know that Steven really just wanted  
  
to come over and, well, see if you were good enough for me."  
  
Conner rolled his eyes. "Oh, so now I'm being rated."  
  
Elizabeth smiled as he lay down next to her. "I think that he liked  
  
you, which is a good thing." She rolled over so she could face him.  
  
"So," he asked, "Did you have a good Christmas?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "Your family is really nice."  
  
"I'm glad that you think so." Conner said, toying with a few strands of  
  
her blond hair. "So is yours, other then your dad, who I'm sure thinks  
  
I'm some sort of delinquent."  
  
"Oh, he doesn't," Elizabeth said, even though she knew her dad and  
  
Conner weren't on the best terms. "Even if he did, he doesn't have the  
  
right to tell me who I should date. What matters to me is that I love you."  
  
She lay her head down against his chest.  
  
"And I love you." Conner shifted over, and sat up. "Excuse me for a  
  
moment, okay?" He waited for Elizabeth to nod, then stood up, and crossed  
  
into his room. When he reappeared a few minutes later, he was holding a  
  
small, gift-wrapped box.  
  
"For you." He said, sitting back down on the edge of her bed, and  
  
handed her the package.  
  
Curiously eyeing the box, Elizabeth sat up, and looked at it for a  
  
moment. It struck her as odd that he'd gotten her something, because they'd  
  
agreed to not get each other presents.  
  
"Okay, Liz, stop staring and open it." He said, prompting her.  
  
She nodded, and then unwrapped it to reveal a ring box. Catching  
  
Conner's eye, she opened it to see simple, yet stunning ring. It had a simple  
  
gold band, with a small diamond in it. Then she saw that it was  
  
engraved with the initials E.W. and C.M.  
  
Elizabeth looked up at Conner, speechless.  
  
"It's a promise ring." He explained, looking deeply into her eyes. "My  
  
promise to you that I'll always love you, and I'll always be there for  
  
you," he pulled her closer and gently placed a hand on her stomach.  
  
"And I'll always be there for our child."  
  
"It's beautiful." She slid the ring onto her finger. "But Conner, how  
  
did you afford it?"  
  
Conner smiled. "It's been in our family for over eighty years- five  
  
generations. My mom thought that it would be appropriate for you to have  
  
it. It was my idea to get the engraving. That was the purpose of going  
  
to the mall last Sunday. So I could drop the ring off to get it done."  
  
"Conner," Elizabeth said quietly. "You don't know how much this means  
  
to me- both the ring and your promise. It means a lot to me."  
  
Conner pulled her closer to him. "I'm glad it does, because you mean a  
  
lot to me."  
  
*************************************************************  
  
Elizabeth woke up around nine on Sunday morning, which was relatively  
  
late for her. She rolled over in her bed, seeing that Conner had already  
  
gotten up. They'd talked for hours about the future, and what would  
  
happen, and he'd fallen asleep in her bed.  
  
Thankful that she wasn't feeling sick, Elizabeth quickly got out of  
  
bed, and then remembered the Conner had had a job interview at eight forty five.  
  
One of the things was that Conner had brought up was that he needed to  
  
get a job. Elizabeth's parents had made it clear that they weren't  
  
going to support the baby, so it was logical that they both would have to work.  
  
After quickly changing, she made her bed and walked down to the  
  
kitchen, thinking of her conversation with Conner the night before.  
  
They'd talked about a lot of important things the night before, one of  
  
the most important being college. Both Elizabeth and Conner were still  
  
planning to go, and both were considering SVU. It was close to home,  
  
and was also the school that Jessica was applying too. Already, Jessica  
  
had said that she'd be glad to baby sit after the baby was born.  
  
Billie had said the same thing when she and Elizabeth had talked the  
  
night before. They'd had a moment alone when Jessica had been talking to  
  
Mrs. Sandborn, and Conner and Steven were talking. She'd said that  
  
she'd love to baby sit, and had also volunteered Steven for the job, too.  
  
Elizabeth smiled to herself as she took out a box of Frosted Flakes  
  
from the cabinet. Billie was such a sweet girl, and was almost like  
  
another sister to Elizabeth. They were good friends, considering that there  
  
only relation was through Steven.  
  
After a quick breakfast, Elizabeth walked upstairs. Before the break,  
  
her creative writing teacher, Mr. Quigley, had assigned a four page  
  
assignment that Elizabeth hadn't even given a second thought. She figured  
  
that she might as well work on it while she had some free time and  
  
wasn't fighting off morning sickness.  
  
She'd taken her books out of her backpack and arranged them on her desk  
  
when she'd gotten another idea. Elizabeth reached over to the phone and  
  
quickly dialed her home phone number. She was determined to talk to her  
  
dad and try to set things right.  
  
Elizabeth heard someone pick up halfway through the third ring. "Hello.  
  
Wakefield residence. This is Ned."  
  
She took a deep breath, then exhaled. "Dad?" she heard a pause. "It's Elizabeth."  
  
Another long pause followed. "What do you want?" His voice was gruff and cold.  
  
"I wanted to talk to you." There was another uncomfortable moment of  
  
silence, and she could hear breathing on the other end.  
  
"About what?" he said finally, his tone unwavering.  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip nervously. "About everything that's happened."  
  
She heard a slight sigh on the other end. "Dad, please. I really need to talk to you."  
  
"Okay." She heard his voice soften ever so slightly.  
  
"I'm really sorry about everything that's happened. I didn't mean for things to turn out like this."  
  
"I know. Your mother is on your side."  
  
"I know that I made a bad decision, but I'm paying for it now. I know  
  
you wanted me to wait until I was older before I had sex, and I wish  
  
that I would have." Elizabeth said, hoping that he'd even acknowledge the  
  
fact that she wished that this hadn't have happened.  
  
"Liz, I know that." His tone softened even more. "And I respect that  
  
you made that decision, but I don't feel sorry for you."  
  
"Dad, I don't want you to feel sorry for me." Elizabeth twisted a  
  
strand of her hair around her finger in nervousness. "What I want is for you  
  
to understand what I'm going through."  
  
Another sigh, and Elizabeth could hear something shifting around in the  
  
background. "I'm sorry that you have to go through this, sweetie. I  
  
wish that you didn't, but that doesn't change the fact that I think that  
  
you did something wrong."  
  
Elizabeth nodded, forgetting she was on the phone. She was about to  
  
speak, but her dad continued on. "Liz, I forgive you for what happened,  
  
but I don't approve of it either. So I do forgive you, but I won't condone what you've done."  
  
Elizabeth bit her lip, and the finished it for him. She knew what he  
  
was going to say. "So you forgive me, but I'm going to continue to stay with the Conner's family?"  
  
"Yes, unless if there is a problem, in which will make other  
  
arrangements." Her dad answered, "But on other subjects, how are you doing?"  
  
"I've been sick a lot. Conner's been really great about it. He's been  
  
there whenever I needed him." Elizabeth added in, hoping that she could  
  
convince her dad that Conner was really a great guy.  
  
"That's too bad." He paused. "Maybe I was wrong to judge your boyfriend  
  
so quickly."  
  
They talked for a few more minutes before they said good-bye. As soon  
  
as she hung up the phone, she heard the front door swing open and  
  
someone move noisily across the foyer. Elizabeth walked down into the  
  
kitchen. Conner was in there, and had dropped his keys on the counter, then  
  
turned to face her, a happy smile on his face.  
  
"I got the job!" he said, smiling, pulling her in for a kiss.  
  
"That's great sweetie!" Elizabeth said enthusiastically, planting a  
  
kiss on his cheek. "So, tell me about your new job." She sat down on a  
  
table chair and Conner sat down beside her.  
  
"Okay, it's for that new record store that is opening next week, the  
  
one that's next door to Sedona." He smiled. "They were looking for  
  
employees that knew a lot about music, and they asked a lot of questions, and  
  
I must've done good, because they offered me the job immediately!"  
  
"That's great!" Elizabeth moved from her chair and relocated on his  
  
lap. "Tell me more."  
  
"Well, It's really good pay, but I'm going to be working almost  
  
everyday after school, and most of the day on Saturday. I start on Wednesday  
  
to help with stocking." He kissed her gently. "I hope you don't mind."  
  
"Not at all. I appreciate what you're doing." She smiled. "I was able  
  
to talk to my dad. He's not mad at me anymore, but he still won't let me  
  
go home. Elizabeth smiled. "But I don't mind staying here."  
  
Elizabeth Wakefield:  
  
The last few days have been really good. I'm so glad that dad forgave  
  
me, even if I'm not living at home. It's nice living here because it  
  
gives Conner and I a chance to talk more often, and of course see each  
  
other. But also Conner's promise made me feel more secure about this. I  
  
know it's a risk to keep the baby. I don't want to admit it, but at first  
  
I was really worried that Conner was going to take off and leave me.  
  
But I know that he won't know, and they helps more then almost anything. 


	13. Doubled Surprises

Chapter 12  
  
Doubled Surprises  
  
TWO MONTHS LATER……  
  
"I look fat." Elizabeth complained, looking in the mirror.  
  
"No, you don't." Conner corrected, from where he was sitting on her bed.  
  
"I look ugly."  
  
"You look gorgeous."  
  
"I look pregnant."  
  
Conner shrugged helplessly. "Sorry Liz. Can't argue." She was just over four  
  
months along, and it was becoming very apparent that she was pregnant.  
  
She sighed, and finished tying her hair up in a bun. "I know, I know. Almost  
  
everybody at school has figured it out."  
  
"Yeah, I know what you mean. I've even gotten asked about it." Conner  
  
agreed, then changed the subject. "So, how are you feeling this morning?"  
  
"Oh, okay." Elizabeth said, setting her brush down on the counter, and  
  
walking over to him. "I feel sick, but at least I don't feel like I'm going to throw up."  
  
"That's too bad." Conner said, wrapping an arm around her as she sat down  
  
next to him. "So, what time's your doctor's appointment tomorrow?" He gave  
  
her a quick kiss.  
  
"It's at ten thirty." A slightly worried expression crossed her face. "You  
  
don't have to work, do you?" Although Conner liked his jobs at Music Stop,  
  
he'd had to work fairly long hours, and it had prevented him from being  
  
around all the time.  
  
"No," he reassured her. "I made sure that I had the day off."  
  
"Oh, good." Elizabeth said, smiling. "I wanted you to be there. Otherwise,  
  
I'd have to have Jess or mom come. No, thank you."  
  
Conner laughed at the expression on her face. "Your mom and Jessica aren't  
  
that bad, are they?"  
  
"No, but I'm glad that you're the one that's coming not them." She shrugged.  
  
"Besides, I'll be able to get a sonogram, so we'll know whether or not the  
  
baby's a girl or a boy."  
  
"I like the sound of Conner Jr." Conner said in a mock serious voice as he  
  
messed with her blond hair.  
  
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Just a little vain, aren't we?" she asked dryly, batting away his hand. "No, seriously. What names do you like?"  
  
"Hmm" Conner said, thinking. "I'm really not good at those type of things. That's a woman's department."  
  
"Oh, what are you? Sexist?" Elizabeth teased, lightly punching him in the  
  
arm. "What do you think about Sarah? If it's a girl, that is."  
  
Conner smiled. "Sarah. I like it. Then I like Elizabeth as a middle name."  
  
"Really?" Elizabeth said, surprised yet flattered.  
  
Conner shrugged. "If it is a girl, why not give it part of your name?"  
  
"Conner…"  
  
"Sarah Elizabeth. If it's a girl, that's what it'll be." Conner said firmly.  
  
"Okay, okay. Then what if it's a boy?" Elizabeth asked.  
  
Conner's brow furrowed in concentration. "John?"  
  
"For real?"  
  
"No, not really. Umm Gordon?" Conner shook his head. "No, I don't  
  
want it to sound like a vegetable or something."  
  
Elizabeth giggled slightly at the look that crossed his face. "Okay, what do  
  
you think of James?"  
  
"No." Conner said immediately. "Edward?"  
  
"No, that's dad's real name, and I'm in no mood to name the kid after him." Elizabeth said, smiling.  
  
"Okay, Adam?"  
  
"I like it." Elizabeth said, leaning against his chest. "It's really cute."  
  
"Yeah." Conner agreed, teasing with the end of a few strands of blond hair. "Adam it is."  
  
**************************************************************  
  
"Stupid alarm clock," Conner muttered under his breath on Saturday morning.  
  
He'd forgotten to turn it off from his weekday wake up times, and it  
  
had woken him up at six thirty. Hence the reason he was mad at it.  
  
Oh well, now that I'm awake, I might as well get up, Conner thought,  
  
crawling out of bed. He grabbed a pair of jeans from off the floor, and a tee  
  
shirt from the floor before he walked into the bathroom.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, Conner walked out, freshly showered and changed.  
  
He looked at the clock. Quarter to seven. He figured that Elizabeth would at  
  
least be up by seven, her usual weekend wake up time. Conner decided to  
  
leave his room in it's state of disarray and go downstairs and get breakfast.  
  
No sooner had he stuck a bagel in the toaster and poured himself some coffee,  
  
Conner heard Elizabeth walking down the stairs. Still in her pajamas, she  
  
looked tired and a little pale.  
  
"Hey baby, good morning. Are you feeling all right?" he asked her, concerned.  
  
"Ever had a freight train hit you?" Elizabeth grumbled. "I'm sure that it's  
  
about equal to how I feel this morning."  
  
"That bad, huh?" Conner asked, wrapping an arm around her waist. "Do you feel  
  
up for some breakfast?"  
  
Elizabeth sighed. "No thanks. I'll eat later." She gave him a kiss and walked  
  
over to the kitchen table and sat down.  
  
Conner felt sorry for her. She'd been sick more often then not, and for the  
  
most part kept a good attitude about it.  
  
Grabbing his bagel and putting it on a plate, he picked up the cream  
  
cheese and sat down at the table, next to his girlfriend. "So ready for your  
  
appointment today?"  
  
"I guess. It'd be my luck to puke on the doctor or something." Elizabeth said dryly.  
  
Okay, Conner now knew exactly how bad she was feeling. The only time she ever got like this was when she felt like a piece of crap two times over.  
  
"Hey, it can't be that bad." He said, trying to make her feel a little better.  
  
"I know. I'm probably getting really irritating," she said, "So if you  
  
want, just ignore me."  
  
"Hey," Conner said immediately, "I know you feel horrible. You've got the  
  
right to complain." He smiled, and reached over and placed his hand on  
  
her hand.  
  
Elizabeth gave it a quick squeeze. "Thanks." She said, smiling slightly.  
  
"Liz, if you don't feel well, why don't you go upstairs and lay down  
  
for awhile?" Conner said, looking deeply into her blue green eyes. "I'm not  
  
trying to get rid of you, but I think you'd feel better if you slept a little longer."  
  
"Okay." Elizabeth agreed, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Make sure that  
  
I'm up by nine, okay?"  
  
Conner nodded. "I will." And with that, she walked up the stairs.  
  
****************************************************************  
  
"It was so funny!" Jessica said laughing as she told Melissa of her shift  
  
at House of Java the night before. "And to make it worse, Jeremy was  
  
standing there, drenched with coffee, when this old lady comes up. She must have been really hard of hearing, because she yelled, 'What did you do, sonny?  
  
Have an accident?'"  
  
Melissa looked at Jessica for a second, their eyes met, and both cracked up  
  
in gales of laughter. "Omigod," Melissa said, choking back tears. "What I  
  
would give to have been there! What did Jeremy do?"  
  
"He just stood there, beat red. I was trying so hard not to laugh that I was  
  
practically gagging." Jessica said, wiping away some tears she'd gotten from  
  
laughing, "And then Ally made it worse. She'd heard everything, and walked  
  
out and said, loudly, "Jeremy, why don't you come back here and get  
  
cleaned up? I thought that you could control yourself now!' I feel so bad for him!"  
  
Melissa cracked up all over again, tears running down her face. Before she  
  
knew what was happening, she was about to fall backwards off her bed. She  
  
grabbed for the sheets, but it was too late. Melissa landed in a heap on the floor.  
  
Jessica laughed for a second, then stopped. "Are you okay?" She asked,  
  
offering an arm. Melissa grabbed it and pulled herself up. It was only then  
  
that she realized that Jessica was starring hard at her shoulder. Her tee shirt sleeve had crinkled up when she fell.  
  
"What's that?" Jessica asked, motioning.  
  
"Nothing." Melissa said quickly, pulling her sleeve down over the dark reddish-brown scar that spanned a good part of her left shoulder. She hadn't  
  
wanted anyone to see that. "Just a scar from a cheerleading drop in junior  
  
high." She said, lying through her teeth. Jessica didn't look convinced.  
  
"That's pretty bad. Are you sure that's what it's from?"  
  
"Really Jess, it's nothing." Melissa said, almost as if she was trying to convince both Jessica and herself. "Nothing at all."  
  
****************************************************************  
  
"Liz, sweetie, wake up. Conner said gently shaking her shoulder. He was  
  
sitting on the edge of her bed, where she was sound asleep. "Baby?"  
  
"Huh?" She said groggily, not yet opening her eyes. "What?"  
  
"You told me to wake me up." Conner said simply.  
  
"Yeah," Elizabeth sat up halfway, and opened her eyes to look at him. "Thanks."  
  
"Feeling better?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded, and turned so she could lean against him. "A little shaky,  
  
but nothing serious."  
  
"Sure about that?" Conner asked, his green eyes still filled with concern.  
  
"I'll be fine as soon as I get a shower."  
  
"Okay, I'll trust you." Conner said, leaning in and giving her a kiss.  
  
"You go ahead. I promised Sandy that I'd help her with her geometry  
  
homework."  
  
"You do that. I'll come down in a little bit."  
  
Just over twenty minutes later, Elizabeth stepped out of the shower, quickly  
  
toweled off, and then slid on some jeans and an old SVH sweatshirt that  
  
had been four sizes too large when she got it.  
  
After towel drying her hair, Elizabeth pulled it into a neat French braid,  
  
and then slipped on her old tennis shoes. She didn't look great, but she  
  
didn't look bad, either. Elizabeth walked down the staircase and into the kitchen, where Conner and Megan were sitting together, huddled over her geometry book. Conner heard her coming and looked up and smiled, but continued to explain the problem to Megan, so Elizabeth just walked over to the cabinet to get something to eat.  
  
Five minutes later, she could tell that the tutoring session had ended,  
  
because Conner walked up on her from behind and wrapped his arms around her.  
  
"Is my girl feeling better?" He asked, pulling back and turning so he could face her."  
  
"Much." Elizabeth said, and looked down at her wrist to her watch.  
  
"Nine forty. We'll need to leave a little after ten, okay?"  
  
"Just tell me when," Conner said, as he tore off a piece of the  
  
blueberry muffin that she'd gotten. "And we'll go."  
  
******************************************************************  
  
Later that morning, Elizabeth leaned against Conner as she waited for them to  
  
call her in for the sonogram. She'd already been through all the standard  
  
tests, and was feeling sick again. As soon as this was over, she would  
  
be more than ready to go home.  
  
"Ms. Wakefield? Mr. McDermott?" a short, balding man with graying hair  
  
and wire rimmed glasses asked, holding a clipboard. Conner stood  
  
immediately, and Elizabeth followed right behind him as they walked over to the  
  
laboratory doctor. "My name is Dr. Ryan Zimmerman, and I'll be caring for you  
  
today."  
  
He smiled warmly. "You kids make a cute couple. Why don't you follow me,  
  
please?"  
  
After they were seated, Dr. Zimmerman bustled about the room, preparing  
  
this or that. "So, Elizabeth, you're four months along, eh?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"I'm sure that after today you'll know what sex your baby will be. Plan  
  
things accordingly." Dr. Zimmerman said, motioning for her to lean back on  
  
the table. Five minutes later, he began the process, Elizabeth and Conner both  
  
watching the screen at the images. "Now let's see can you see the heartbeat  
  
there?"  
  
he asked, smiling, and showing them were it was coming from.  
  
Then he frowned, "Well, I'll be" he made a few adjustments, and then  
  
smiled brightly. "Congratulations. You're going to be having twins." 


	14. Epilogue

Epilogue  
  
Elizabeth Wakefield:  
  
Omigod. How are we going to work this out? I know Conner and I could have cared for one baby. It's going to change everything even more. I don't know what to do, or who to tell, or anything. God, what is going to happen?  
  
Conner McDermott:  
  
More than anything, I wish I wouldn't have put so much pressure on Liz to have sex, because I think if I would have just let it go, we never would have. If we hadn't, we wouldn't have to deal with one baby, let alone two. 


End file.
